Illawarra businessman Steve Benko was piloting his microlight plane that morning before it crashed into a paddock at Dundee just before 10.30am.

The crash also killed Mr Benko’s partner, 55-year-old Michelle Stewart, of Albion Park, who was a passenger in the plane.

“They will both be truly missed by everyone and myself especially,” wrote Mr Benko’s son Jacob, confirming the pair’s death on Facebook.

The couple were visiting friends at the River Glen B&B Farmstay, which has its own private airstrip for light aircraft to take off and land. 

Mr Benko worked all over the state, forming close relationships with many locals.

“It’s all just too raw at the moment,” said farmstay part-owner Michele Lawson.

Those close to the pair have described the incident as “strange”, as Mr Benko was a keen flyer and known to have a “fastidious” nature in the cockpit.

“I never had concerns when he went flying ... it’s such a mysterious accident, but we must deal with facts and not speculate,” said good friend Ned MacIntosh, of West Wollongong.

He described the pilot as particularly safety-conscious, saying his electrical training made him meticulous.

The accident has devastated the Benko family, and online tributes continue to pour in.

“[Michelle] has been a massive part of my life growing up and he was such a humble amazing man he would do anything for anyone and always had a smile on his face,” Craig Casey Furner posted.

A colleague, who worked across from the Benko business in Oak Flats, said he knew the electrician well. 

“He was like a second dad ... he would always go out of his way to help someone, even it was an inconvenience to him,” the man, who did not want to be named, said.

He said the 51-year-old often went to other work sites just to help out. 

“He was a respected man above and beyond, in his business and personally.”

Hang Gliding Federation Australia has concluded its examination of the wreckage.

New England police confirmed yesterday a report would be provided to investigators as they prepared a brief for the coroner.