A 54-year-old pilot was killed and his crew member was seriously injured when their fixed-wing micro light aircraft crashed in Klipview, Vaal police said on Saturday.

Captain Shado Mashobane said the aircraft crashed into pieces 9.15am on a farm near the R59 and the Block House in the Rand Vaal.

Mashobane said the pilot was doing a low level pass on the runway when he came across a tree. "His left wing dropped and the pilot lost control and crashed into the ground," he said.

Netcare 911 spokesperson Nick Dollman said: "The crew member sustained multiple serious injuries, he was stabilised and rushed to hospital. The pilot died on the scene".

The cause of the accident was unknown.

SA Civil Aviation Authority, chief executive officer, Captain Colin Jordaan was not immediately available for comment.

In October former SA Rugby communications manager Chris Hewitt (24) and his flying instructor, Henricus de Witt (34) were killed when their two-seater aircraft crashed near Hekpoort, north west of Krugersdorp.

The Klipview planecrash brings to 24 the number of people who have been killed in 12 aircraft accident since October.

Sapa