A glider pilot who died when his aircraft crashed near Omarama Air Field had a wealth of experience and had recently returned from flying in the United States.
Sixty-year-old Michael McKellow, known as Joe, was piloting the fixed-wing glider when it crashed into a mountain known as Snowy Peak.
His friend was piloting another glider nearby and witnessed the crash.
Civil Aviation Authority investigators are investigating the crash.
RadioLIVE