A FLYING instructor and his passenger were killed when their microlight crashed into a cliff.

Terry Stewart, 50, of St Justin Close, Orpington, was killed when his Pegasus Quik G-Styx came down at Warden Point on the Isle of Sheppey.

The two-seater plane set off from Rochester Airport at around 1pm on August 21 and witness reported seeing something falling off the aircraft before it plunged.

Thames Coastguard rescuers recovered Mr Stewart's body and that of 35-year-old Daniel Attubo, from Maidstone, at around 3pm.

Investigators discovered the plane's wings about 100 metres from where its cockpit landed.

A spokesman for Rochester Microlights Flying School, based at the airport, said: "We are absolutely devastated. The pilot was a very close friend of ours."

Detective Inspector Bob Panton, of Kent Police, said: "This is a tragic accident and our thoughts are with the families of the deceased."

The Air Accident Investigations Branch are investigating the incident.