Light plane crash-lands

An investigation is under way after a light aircraft crash-landed in the Brecon Beacons in south Wales.

The Piper Cherokee plane came down on Rhigos mountain, eight miles west of Merthyr Tydfil, at around 1520 BST on Saturday.

The injured were taken to Morriston Hospital

Three men on board the craft were taken to Morriston Hospital in Swansea by a rescue helicopter from RAF Chivenor, Devon.

The pilot and two passengers, from the West Midlands and Shropshire, were treated for minor injuries and shock.

A search for the plane began when the pilot reported that he was lost in bad weather and poor visibility shortly after taking off from Swansea airport.

He later called on his radio to say that the aircraft had crashed and all three on board had survived.

They were two men from the West Midlands, aged 49 and 50, and a 47-year-old from Shropshire.

Rescue mission

Mid and West Wales Fire Service named the crash site as Mynydd Beili-glas, a wooded area of Rhigos mountain approximately 2000ft above sea level.

They sent two fire engines and a four-wheel drive vehicle to the scene.

Officers said the thick trees had softened the impact of the crash-landing.

The damaged aircraft was made safe by a crew from the neighbouring South Wales Fire Service.

The South Wales police force helicopter also went to the scene.

The Air Accident Investigation Branch has been informed.

In April two people died when a Piper PA38 Tomahawk crashed near Cwmbran, south Wales.

The plane was flying from Cardiff International Airport to to Shobdon Airfeld near Leominster, Herefordshire, when it came down at the disused Blaenbran reservoir.