Two Bloemfontein families, returning from their Mozambique holiday, were killed in the plane crash near Barberton on the weekend, the Volksblad reported on Tuesday.

The pilot of the plane was also a Bloemfontein resident and an instructor at a local flight school.

Their light aircraft went missing in the Barberton region on Sunday afternoon en-route from the Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport in Nelspruit to Tempe Airport at Bloemfontein.

The wreckage was found on Monday afternoon in a mountainous area and the bodies of the pilot and two couples with two children each were recovered.

Nine people, including four children, died.

The Volksblad report those killed in the accident were Craig Grant (44) his wife Tracy (39), and their two children Cameron (13), and Samantha (11).

The others were Glen Coward (42), his wife Helena (45), and their two sons Davydd (13), and Richard (9).

Grant was a partner in a Bloemfontein law firm while Coward was the manager of a local business.

The two men had been good friends for many years, the report said.

The two families had decided to go on holiday together at the Bara Lodge north on Maputo in Mozambique during the past school holiday.

The accident happened on their way back home on Sunday.

The pilot was Nico Nel (21), who was a flight instructor at the Westline Aviation Fly School in Bloemfontein.

Sapa