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Two young men, Dimitris Hillas and Panagiotis Chronopoulos, lost their lives in a plane crash. Their families are in deep grief. In the last 48 hours, however, the question most often asked is: why did the amphibious plane of Aventura crash?

The website of zougla.gr has revealed details about the causes of the crash. The Aventura plane, which belongs to a businessman from Crete, is legitimate. Besides, both pilots had used it before. All started on Friday, 25 July, when Hillas departed from Athens to Petalidi. His friend, engineer Panagiotis Chronopoulos, had invited him to fly on the aeroplane again.

On Saturday morning, between 7 and 8 a.m., both pilots were in Sparta and after the due check, out of pure stubbornness, they decided to fly over the airport to make sure that the aeroplane was ready to fly. Hillas, who was very experienced, in ultra light aircraft in particular, was Chief Pilot, and Chronopoulos, who had recently acquired a licence, was a Co-pilot.

Immediately after takeoff, the engine stopped working, but only for a split second and then went back to normal. In such cases, according to the manual, the pilot should "throw" the front part of the plane to gain some momentum, and immediately after that land it in the nearest suitable place. However, this manoeuvre is quite tricky.

Apparently, the pilot had tried to put the plane back in motion so that he could land it at the airport. He automatically made ​​a left turn, but the engine was dead, and as a result the momentum was lost immediately, and the plane began to fall "spinning", as pilots call it, with its front part pointing to the ground.

The pilots’ last selfie before taking off

At that time, the aircraft was 80-100 metres high and it was difficult to put it back in motion. It turns out that the co-pilot pulled the lever to eject, but there was no time for that.

After the fire brigade took the pilots out of the plane and they were transported to the hospital in Sparta by ambulance, the pilots were registered dead. According to the available information, Hillas’ death was instantaneous and Chronopoulos died a few minutes later.

Last Goodbye to the Two Pilots

 Dimitris Hillas will be buried today by relatives and friends, at 10:45 a.m., at the cemetery in Ilioupouli. The service for Panagiotis Chronopoulos will be held at 6 p.m. at the cemetery in Petalidi.