<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/missing-plane-snowy-mountains-search-for-light-plane/f380cb10-a5e4-4f40-81a2-88f8c55d6d0f" rel="" target="_blank" title="pilot who crashed over the NSW Snowy Mountains"><span>pilot who crashed over the NSW Snowy Mountains</span></a><span> is believed to be dead, with police saying no one could have survived the significant wreckage.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Bega accountant David Stephens departed Wangaratta in Victoria in his 1966 Beechcraft Debonair on Tuesday and was expected to arrive at Moruya Airport in New South Wales that afternoon.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He was reported missing when the aircraft failed to reach its destination. </span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/fresh-search-under-way-for-missing-schoolgirl-melissa-trussell-25-years-after-her-disappearance-garden-island-adelaide-south-australia-cold-case/da2ebc14-3232-491c-812d-7eb037339bbc" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Fresh search for missing schoolgirl 25 years after her disappearance</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The multi-agency search operation was hindered by weather conditions and unforgiving terrain, but yesterday evening when crews located the plane around its last known location near Khancoban.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It was found on "snow-covered mountainous terrain in the Kosciuszko National Park, east of Khancoban", according to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Riverina Police District Commander Superintendent Andrew Spliet told reporters this afternoon that it was clear from the wreckage that there had been a "significant impact" into the terrain.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/david-stephens-snowy-mountains-plane-crash-wouldnt-be-survivable-as-crews-assess-wreckage/8a5a8dea-f808-43b7-b63e-e41aff9c78e1" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It's fairly clear that wouldn't be survivable," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"You wouldn't recognise it as a plane. It's just a significant impact. Obviously, a fair bit of speed into the mountain range there, which has completely destroyed that aircraft."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Spliet said the identity of the pilot was still unconfirmed.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/snow-alpine-regions-snow-depth/9b42e5dc-b54d-4494-a98d-122cfe72b465" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Aussies hit the slopes as ski resorts enjoy best July snow depth in years</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>NSW Police has taken charge of the investigation.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A recovery operation is under way, with investigators and crime scene officers attending the scene to determine the cause of the collision and try to identify the pilot.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Spliet said the weather on Tuesday was "fairly unpleasant" and "not ideal".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Australian Transport Safety Bureau, which launched its own investigation, is working closely with NSW Police to gather evidence and retrieve pieces of the aircraft.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Investigators are also collecting relevant recorded information, including ADS-B flight tracking data, weather information, and pilot and aircraft maintenance records," the bureau said in a statement.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Australian Transport Safety Bureau will hand down its preliminary findings in about two months.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/salim-mehajer-leaves-jail-former-auburn-deputy-mayor-almost-five-years-behind-bars/d733325c-0443-4d4d-a0d9-ee8b160e1598" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>'Respectfully': Salim Mehajer's first words on camera after parole</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Stephens' family issued a statement yesterday, saying he was an experienced pilot who had been flying for about 60 years.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"David loved to fly. He earned his pilot's licence even before his driver's licence in the 1960s," his family said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Unfortunately, David disappeared on his flight home.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It is known that the mountain weather can turn very quickly and we have to assume he must have seen a way over the mountain and decided not to turn back to Wangaratta.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"David has quite a bit of experience flying that plane, but we can't know what situation he was facing and we'll only have answers once they locate the plane and with that, David."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Stephens was only two months out from retiring, and his family had been looking forward to spending time with him.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/how-to-follow-9news-digital/29855bb1-ad3d-4c38-bc25-3cb52af1216f" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP</span></em></strong></a><strong><em><span>: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. 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