Air show crash claims life of veteran test pilot James O’Connell in Impala jet

The organisers of the West Coast Airshow have named the pilot who crashed in an Impala Mark 1 aircraft during Saturday’s flying display in Saldanha as respected test pilot James O’Connell.

Despite the aircraft appearing stable through most of the performance, a sudden loss of altitude during the final manoeuvre led to the crash at about 3pm, with a large billow of black smoke signalling the severity of the accident to the shocked crowd.

On LinkedIn, O'Connell is listed as a test pilot for the Test Flying Academy of South Africa. He had a 40-year career with the SA Air Force.

The air show's organisers explained: “O'Connell was performing a routine display intended to demonstrate the capabilities of the Impala Mark 1 — a beloved warbird with deep historical significance for many South Africans. It was especially a huge moment because the Impala has not been seen performing at air shows for many years.

“Eyewitness accounts report that the aircraft appeared to be under control during most of the display. However, during one of the final manoeuvres, the aircraft experienced a sudden loss of altitude and entered a steep dive before making contact with the ground.”

Airshow commentator Brian Emmenis, who witnessed the event in real time, said: “He went into the dirty configuration, he rolled the aircraft — the dirty configuration is when the undercarriage is extended — he turned the aircraft, the undercarriage was up. On coming out of it, one could clearly see that he was losing height. He went out towards the hangars — he was at that stage in a serious deep dive — and he went straight into the ground. There was no sign of an attempt to eject. Emergency services responded immediately, the crowd remained behind the barriers, totally stunned.”

The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) and Air Show South Africa (ASSA) were notified immediately and a full investigation is under way.

The SACAA said its Accident and Incident Investigations Division (AIID) was working with the event safety officers to collate preliminary information. A preliminary report would be published 30 days from the day of the accident.

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