A teacher and a student have died after a small aircraft crashed during a routine training exercise in Kipeto, Kajiado County, southern Kenya, on Friday.

Kajiado West Police Commander Maureen Kuto confirmed the crash, saying the aircraft was carrying two people when it went down near a wind power plant in the Kipeto area.

“When we received a phone call, we were alerted that an aircraft had been involved in an accident and had two people on board, a student and a teacher. The first victim succumbed at the scene while the second succumbed while being rushed to hospital,” Kuto said.

Kuto added preliminary reports indicated that poor visibility caused by heavy morning mist may have contributed to the crash.

Poor visibility

She said the pilot attempted to make a crash landing after encountering the poor visibility but the aircraft ultimately crashed.

“There was a lot of mist in the morning, so they tried to crash-land, but unfortunately the aircraft crashed,” she revealed.

Images obtained by local media and circulated on social media showed the aircraft's wreckage scattered across a dry, open field.

Emergency responders wearing protective clothing and security officers were seen at the scene examining the wreckage and assessing the circumstances surrounding the crash.

Pieces of the aircraft's metal casing, luggage believed to belong to the occupants and other debris were scattered across the crash site.