General News
16 December, 2019
Much-loved Cooktown man identified as pilot in Mareeba’s fatal plane crash
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THE pilot killed in a plane crash on Saturday afternoon has been identified as 73-year-old Cooktown man William Scott-Bloxam.
William Scott-Bloxam and a 63-year-old Stuart man Geoffrey Burry were pronounced deceased at the scene after their plane crashed on the perimeter of the Mareeba Aerodrome.
It is believed they were on a training flight, with one witness describing a “backfiring” sound coming from the engine shortly before the plane went down.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) are still working to determine what caused Mr Scott-Bloxam's Angel 44 twin-engine plane to crash.
Since being identified as the pilot in the crash, a number of heartfelt condolence messages have been spread across social media, with many people noting that Mr Scott-Bloxam was a much-loved member of the Cooktown community who will be sorely missed.
