Pilot killed in WA plane crash identified

A Perth man has been identified as the pilot who lost his life in a plane crash in the Wheatbelt on Wednesday.

Malcolm Vivian, 76, was flying just outside of Northam in a single-seat plane he had built himself when it crashed in Malabaine about 11am.

“Emergency services attended and located the pilot, the sole occupant of the aircraft, deceased at the scene,” a WA police spokesperson said.

Aerial vision of the crash showed the wreckage over cleared bushland off the Great Eastern Highway, with fire trucks, police and detectives at the scene.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said Vivian had been flying a replica of a Spitfire plane, which is a single-seat fighter aircraft that was used in World War II, with enthusiasts frequently working to build their own from scratch.

Vivian was an aviation enthusiast from Perth’s northern suburbs and was an active member of the Sport Aircraft Association of Australia and the Sport Aircraft Builders Club.

He and the club had previously worked at a local high school and helped them build a fuselage for a plane. The club donated tools to the students who worked on the project.

Originally from the United Kingdom, Vivian was an electrical engineer by trade.

Friends said Vivian was an avid flyer, and accepted the risk when he took to the sky. Another said Vivian had been embarking on a test flight after finishing building the plane.

“He will be missed – what a loss of a great man with a love of aviation,” one said.

The ATSB said investigators will arrive on site on Thursday.

“The ATSB has deployed a team of transport safety investigators from its Canberra offices, specialising in aircraft maintenance and engineering, and materials analysis,” an ATSB spokesperson said.

Investigators have asked anyone with video footage of the accident flight, or its immediate aftermath, to contact them.

The preliminary report into the crash is set to take eight weeks.