A plane has crashed on the first public day of the Australian International Airshow. Photo: ABC / Paul Crock
A plane has crashed during the Australian International Airshow at Avalon, south-west of Melbourne.
Police said emergency services were called to reports the plane had lost control while conducting a demonstration and crashed into the tarmac about 5:15pm on Friday (local time).
RNZ broadcaster Phil O'Brien was among the crowd which was stunned into silence.
He said a cloud of dust went up on impact, the shock of which was felt through the ground.
"It's just beyond horrible. You see the plane coming down and suddenly it's not there and you realise instantly what's happened.
"As I look out over the runway now there are about four or five emergency vehicles over there while they get the pilot out.
"But to be honest it was just nose-first, full speed into the ground."
O'Brien believes the plane intentionally stalled as part of an acrobatic display but then failed to pull up in time.
"But the weirdest thing was this huge crowd at the airport just went completely silent, just stopped. There wasn't a sound for about 10 seconds when everyone realised what had happened."
"The pilot and sole occupant of the aircraft sustained serious injuries," a Victoria Police spokesperson said.
"The incident occurred a significant distance away from spectators and there have been no reports of further injuries."
The plane is believed to have been a part of the Paul Bennett Aerobatics team that crashed during the first public day of the event.
\- **_ABC w/RNZ_**