South African aerobatic pilot Glen Dell died after he was involved in a light aircraft crash at the Secunda Airshow in Mpumulanga on Saturday.
"It's a loss to the South African aviation community," family spokesman John Sayers said.
Dell passed away in the late afternoon after being transferred to Sunninghill hospital for burns treatment following the morning's crash at the airshow.
He was 51.
The airshow's organiser Hannes van Heerden called Dell's death "tragic".
According to Dell's website, he was the first South African to win the Advanced World Aerobatic Championships, after coming first overall in the event held in Ljungbyhed, Sweden, in 2004.
Dell had at least 25 000 hours flying experience on over 250 different types of aircraft.
According to Dell's website, he also held a zero foot aerobatic display waiver. A low level waiver is only awarded to pilots with proven competency and reputation, and a zero foot waiver is a rare distinction.
In 2003 he began designing and manufacturing an aerobatic aircraft, the Slick 360.
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