(dpa) - A pilot who died when his
home-built light aircraft stalled and nose-dived into the ground was a retired
Air Force commander who recently set a record for a solo flight around New Zealand, news reports said Sunday.
Wayne Matthews, 62, died instantly Saturday with his sole passenger, Brent
Baldwin, 46, when the Thorp S-18 crashed on an Air Force base at Whenuapai,
near Auckland.
Matthews was reported to be vice-president of New Zealand's Sport Aircraft
Association.
Civil aviation officials began an inquiry Sunday into the cause of the
accident.