Crash pilot was a father of two

A PILOT who died when the light aircraft he was flying crashed on Saddleworth Moor was a father-of-two.

Niall Gover (41), of Stockport, was found dead at the scene after his plane crashed near Holmfirth Road on Wednesday.

He had got into difficulties after taking off from Barton Aerodrome. The wreckage was discovered by teenage shepherd Christopher Crowther as he herded sheep above Upperwood Farm, Greenfield.

Mr Gover owned Orchards Day Nursery in Heaton Moor with his partner Sharon Mills and leaves children aged six and three.

Police, fire and ambulance attended the crash scene and members of Oldham Mountain Rescue Service helped to scour the moors for remains of the aircraft, camping by the wreckage overnight to seal the area off for the Air Accident Investigation Branch.

Their inquiry into the cause of the crash is continuing.