Aeroplane crashes into house in Pauanui

A small aeroplane has crashed into a house in the holiday hotspot of Pauanui, on the Coromandel Peninsula, with what a witness described as an "almighty thud".

Police said about 9:10am on Christmas Day they received reports of a small plane crashing into an unoccupied house on Harvard Court, next to Pauanui Airfield.

A Hato Hone St John spokesperson said one ambulance responded to the scene, and treated two patients.

One person was in a moderate condition and one person had minor injuries - both were sent to Thames Hospital.

Fire and Emergency shift manager Lauren Sika said a crew was in attendance on Christmas morning, and all people involved had been accounted for.

Civil Aviation confirmed it was looking into the crash, and the aircraft was a Falcomposite Furio LN-27 RG.

"Almighty thud" heard

A holidaymaker who was in Pauanui when the crash happened told RNZ he heard an "almighty thud" as the plane crashed.

Paul Baker said he was staying at the motorhome park at the Pauanui Club, which backs onto the Pauanui airstrip, when he noticed a plane taking off on Christmas morning.

The initial take-off seemed fine, Baker said, until he heard an "almighty thud".

"I thought 'oh that doesn't sound too good'."

Hearing sirens, Baker went over to see what had happened, and saw the aircraft had slammed into the house.

The plane had rotated 180 degrees, he said, ripping through the lounge corner of the house, and the plane's engine and propeller had been torn off.

It was "absolutely lucky" no one was in the house at the time, Baker said.

"It could have been really much worse, and the plane not catching fire or anything like that is a bit of a lucky break [in] a very unfortunate incident."

Baker said it was the second time he had seen an aircraft crash in Pauanui, having once witnessed a plane take off, then crash into the estuary in the early 2000s.

The Civil Aviation Authority said it had launched an investigation into the cause of the crash.

Officials would make enquiries in the coming days to understand what happened and why, and to decide whether any further action is required.

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