Tributes paid to flying instructor after Loch Lomond crash kills two
An 80-year-old flying instructor, understood to be Ian Haggis, and a 16-year-old boy died when a light aircraft crashed near Drymen by Loch Lomond, with an investigation under way.
How it was covered
- BBC One carried 85% of the airtime.
- Channel 4, ITV and Sky News: not found in tracked broadcasts.
- BBC News and GB News: covered online, not found on air.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story. Facts only one channel reported are attributed to it.
A 16-year-old boy and an 80-year-old man have died after a light aircraft crashed near Drymen, by Loch Lomond. Both were pronounced dead at the scene. Their next of kin have been informed. Later tributes were paid to the 80-year-old, a flying instructor understood to be Ian Haggis. The 16-year-old boy has not been named.
The crash happened on Friday afternoon northeast of Drymen. Police Scotland officers cordoned off the site, which is remote and on the other side of a hill. Temporary airspace restrictions were put in place. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch sent a team to the scene, and specialist equipment was brought in to help with the investigation because of the remote location. The area is popular with hill walkers.
The aircraft was a Piper Tomahawk registered to a training organisation. It had taken off from Glasgow Airport after 4.15pm on Friday. It stopped transmitting about 22 minutes later, and other reports said the plane came down about 20 minutes after take-off. Earlier in the day it had completed a tour flight north-east before making its final journey.
Local residents described a large emergency response, including police, ambulances and a Scottish Fire and Rescue major incident unit. Some said they had assumed it was a training exercise. Glasgow Airport said its thoughts and heartfelt sympathies were with the families and friends affected.
Initial reports placed the crash near Drem in central Scotland. Later coverage located it near Drymen, by Loch Lomond. The investigation into the crash is continuing.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Reported by all 2 channels | ||
| A 16-year-old boy and an 80-year-old man were killed in a light aircraft crash in central Scotland. | ||
| Temporary airspace restrictions were put in place around the crash area. | Reported by BBC One | |
| The aircraft was a Piper Tomahawk that took off from Glasgow Airport just after 4.15pm yesterday and stopped transmitting 22 minutes later. | ||
| The crash happened yesterday afternoon near Drem. | ||
| Only on one channel | ||
| A 16-year-old boy also died in the incident and has not been named. | Reported by Channel 5 | Not reported by BBC One |
| An 80-year-old victim was identified as a flying instructor, reported to be Ian Haggis. | Reported by Channel 5 | Not reported by BBC One |
| An Air Accidents Investigation Branch team was on the crash scene. | Not reported by Channel 5 | Reported by BBC One |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
BBC ONE West's coverage moved from an initial scene report near Drem to a detailed report placing the crash near Drymen by Loch Lomond. It focused on the police cordon, the remote crash site, the Piper Tomahawk's flight path, the AAIB investigation and Glasgow Airport's statement. It also carried unrelated items before and after the crash report.
- “A 16-year-old boy and an 80-year-old man have died after a light aircraft crashed near Loch Lomond.”
- “The plane, a Piper Tomahawk, which was registered to a training organisation, had taken off from Glasgow Airport after 4.15 on Friday. Just 22 minutes later, it stopped transmitting.”
- “A team from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch has travelled to the site.”
5 News Weekend gave brief, sombre updates on the crash and later led with tributes naming the 80-year-old flying instructor as Ian Haggis. It stressed the Loch Lomond and Drymen location, the unnamed 16-year-old victim and the short time between take-off and the crash. It did not include the same level of scene detail as the BBC reports.
- “Tributes are being paid to an 80 year old flying instructor, understood to be Ian Haggis, who died in a light aircraft crash near Loch Lomond.”
- “A 16 year old boy who hasn't been named also died when the plane came down near Drymen on Friday.”
- “It had taken off from Glasgow Airport just 20 minutes earlier.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.