Light aircraft forced landing on Voortrekker road

[serval]

I have an eyewitness report of an incident which had allready occurred by the time it was seen - approximately 5km past Skipberg towards afsaal - high wing light aircraft ZS NXC . Appears to be a forced landing - wing hit a small tree , propellor struck ground .

KNP spokesman : "An aeroplane was forced to land on Voortrekker road (yesterday) in the KNP after it ran out of fuel. The pilot was travelling from Mozambique to Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport (KMIA). He was travelling alone, and had to be rescued by a tourist who took him to Pretoriuskop Restcamp for safety.
The section ranger at Pretoriuskop had to accommodate and assist him to locate the next of kin. The pilot is fine although still in shock, he was unhurt.
However, the aeroplane is slightly damaged due to an emergency landing."

[Flutterby]

Thank goodness he's ok!

[Sprocky]

If he did run out of fuel,...why??

If he was flying from Moz, why over KNP at a height that would force him to land in KNP if something went wrong???

I am glad I am not in his shoes!

[nan]

Voortrekker road... an airport runway
and why not a seaplane on Sunset dam

glad nothing wrong

[Amoli]

I lift my eyebrows to this episode. Don't these guys do some GOOOOOOD planning before a trip??
Check the tyres, check the pressure, check the oil, CHECK THE FUEL ??

In Johannesburg area, should you run out of fuel on any highway... you get fined.
The authorities define that as a problem that could have been prevented.

Can you imagine what your trail of thought must be to drive into the Kruger without enough fuel to reach a camp..... ... nevermind a plane
These are only some laughing thoughts at 5.30 in the morning....

[nan]

it seems they embark the minum of fuel for the travel, because of the weight... but have to know calculate

[Sprocky]

If the aircraft (ZS-NXC) did run out of fuel, the pilot has a lot of explaining to do.

I should get hold of a few pics of it tomorrow.

[iNdlovu]

OK, I'll admit all this is speculation and until the facts are known, we're all probably barking up the wrong tree. This guys was apparently on his own, so I don't see weight as being a problem unless he had a lot of cargo. Before flying into controlled airspace he would have had to file a flight plan from Maputo. Part of this flight plan would entail estimated time of arrival, so he obviously knew how long he would be in the air. It is not rocket science to then calculate how much fuel he would need for that duration and by law have 30 minutes in reserve. Unless he encountered one heck of a head wind which had not been accounted for I cannot see how on such a short trip he could run out of fuel. As a licensed pilot he surely applies the basics to any flight. Maybe it was a case of dirty fuel (in Maputo anything is possible) or something along those lines. Either way, he has a lot of explaining to do.

[Sprocky]

This specific aircraft had a similar incident last year in Vilancoulos. Both were apparently wheels-up landings.

[iNdlovu]

Was it the same pilot?