‘A thorough gentleman’
Tributes to Southport pilot killed in crash
FRIENDS of pilot Doug Braund have expressed their shock after the Southport retiree died in a plane crash yesterday morning.
The 71-year-old was killed when the Cessna 172 Skyhawk plane he was flying from Southport Flying Club in Coombabah to Ballina Byron Gateway Airport for maintenance crashed into trees in Brooklet, 20km from his destination.
His wife Joan was on her way by car to pick him up from the airport when the crash happened.
Friends of the father of three are puzzled as to what happened, describing Mr Braund as a “cautious pilot” with extensive experience.
“He was a very careful flyer which is puzzling us, it’s out of character for him to have crashed his plane like that,” Gold Coast Sports Flying Club vice president Ray Morgan said. “He was a very experienced pilot and always exercised caution.
“He was part of an ultralight syndicate before getting a private pilot license and often gave free plane rides on club open days.”
Mr Braund was a pilot with more than 20 years’ experience and a member of Gold Coast Sports Flying Club before relocating his four-seater plane to the Southport Flying Club at Coombabah.
Longtime friend Allen Buckley said he would remember Mr Braund as a “thorough gentleman”.
“We flew down the West coast together and around Western Australia,” he said.
“He was one of those guys who was never loud, he was always very quiet and respectful.
“A thorough gentleman I suppose is the way to describe him.”
Friend and fellow pilot Merv Hargraves – who also regularly flew with Mr Braund – said he never said a bad word about anyone.
“He was the nicest person you would ever meet, just really easy to get along with,” he said. “It’s sad what happened.”
Bija Nicholson of Binna Burra was on her way to work at about 8.30am yesterday when she saw Mr Braund’s Cessna 172 Skyhawk “flying really low and weaving” before the plane crashed.
“The plane flew over the highway quite low towards Brooklet,” she said.
“They weren’t flying straight, it was weaving.”
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is investigating the incident and a preliminary report will be filed within 30 days.