Charlie Smith
THE student and instructor who were killed in a plane crash this afternoon have been identified.
Commander Daniel Melero Ordoñez, 50, from Cadiz, and third-year student Rosa Almiron Otero, 20, from Cordoba died when their aircraft smashed into Murcia’s Mar Menor at around 12:00pm.
The two soldiers were taking part in a training flight, before an engine fault saw the pair attempt to land on La Manga.
The Air Force plane – a T.35 Pillan – performed different maneuvers, but on its third take-off the pilot reported that the engine had stopped.
The flight was the plane’s third in 24 hours without any problems having been reported, and the craft had been safety checked this morning.
Rescue teams have now recovered both bodies from the site of the accident near Santiago de la Ribera Yacht Club.
It comes just three weeks after pilot fellow Air Force pilot Francisco Marin Nuñez lost his life when his plane crashed into the sea just 100 metres from La Manga.
