“He’s got the timing wrong. The propeller struck the ground and disabled the aeroplane on the runway.“
Mascarenhas said the student was unharmed.
“I’ve had a chat to him and suggested he take a bit of a break, then get straight back into it.
“You do get shaken up after this sort of thing but, in my experience, it’s fairly temporary.
“The idea is to make sure they have the care and support they need.”
He said the plane would be “assessed thoroughly” but initial inspections indicated it could be repaired fairly quickly.
“These sorts of events don’t usually end in injuries of any sort. It’s more the damage to the aircraft.”
A Fire and Emergency NZ spokesperson said two appliances were sent to the airport.
“On arrival, they said we can go home. We came, we saw, we left.”
Police and Hato Hone St John also attended.