Tributes for pilot killed in crash who was two months from retirement

The Advertiser

22-07-2025

A pilot who died when his plane crashed in the NSW Snowy Mountains last week was always "generous with his time and knowledge" and just two months away from retirement, friends say.
Police found David Stephens' body in wreckage in the Snowy Mountains on Friday, July 18, after a multi-day search for a missing plane.
The 74-year-old resident of Brogo, north of Bega on the NSW South Coast, went missing while flying from Wangaratta in northeast of Victoria to Moruya on the south coast.
Mr Stephens worked for decades as a chartered tax accountant and was only two months away from retirement, and his family said they had been hoping to spend more time with him.
On Tuesday, July 15, at 4.35pm, emergency services were notified of a possible plane crash near Dargals Trail in the Snowy Valleys. The wreckage, and Mr Stephens' body, were found a few days later.
In a recent press conference, Riverina Police District Commander, Superintendent Andrew Spliet said the force of the impact of the aircraft was significant.
"You wouldn't recognise it as an aeroplane," he said.
"There was obviously a fair bit of speed into the mountain range, which has completely destroyed that aircraft, and it wouldn't be a survivable collision."
Tony Rettke is a fellow aviator and president of Bega's rural flying club, the Frogs Hollow Flyers. He recounted getting the call from Mr Stephens' wife.
"I got a message, and it was from David's wife. She said something like, 'Hi, this is Lynda Leigh. Could you call me back, please?' She sounded upset," Mr Rettke told ACM's Bega District News.
"Lynda said, 'I'm just calling to let you know, as the president of the Frogs Hollow Flyers and a friend of David's, he's crashed his plane'."
"I had been talking to David a day or two before. He needed to get a couple of emails out for me, and said he would do it at Wangaratta [the airport he left prior to the disappearance]."
Mr Rettke sat in his car as thoughts crossed his mind of what may have happened to his friend.
"It actually knocked me," he said.
"I've been thinking a lot about it. About how David would have felt and what might have happened, and there could be 100 things. [It] could be the aircraft, could be a mistake he's made, could be ... many things."
Mr Rettke said it was sobering to think about, as he, too, had flown on numerous occasions across the past month in varied weather conditions.
Mr Stephens earned his pilot's licence before he began driving in the 1960s, and was immensely proud of his 1966 Beechcraft Debonair, which he christened "Deb".
It was understood that Mr Stephens was a non-instrument-rated pilot, which meant he could only fly when he could see the ground and maintain visual contact with landmarks.
"I do that [kind of flight] all the time. It's called 'tiger country' where you can't land without tearing the wings off. Some people go around it. It's the risk you take," Mr Rettke said.
"I don't know if his plane was completely destroyed. I think it would have looked like newspaper shredded through the trees, because they are built light.
"It's more dangerous to ride a motorbike from here to Canberra, without a doubt. People worry that I swim with sharks, but they're always there."
About 4pm, Thursday, July 17, a rescue helicopter found the crashed plane near its last known GPS location.
Just before 3pm the next day, NSW police found the body of a man in the wreckage.
Mr Rettke remembered his friend as an honest man who served as secretary on the Frogs Hollow Flyers committee, where he was an active member.
"I pulled him onto the committee because he was a member, and I could tell he had a lot to contribute to being a wise person and a flyer for many years," Mr Rettke said.
"He did his job well and had only been doing it for about six months, and had a major role in a recent fly-in with 25 aircraft coming to camp."
Besides being the immensely proud pilot of "Deb", his 1966 Debonair, Mr Stephens had a long history of racing on dirt trails.
As well as a Frogs Hollow Flyer, Mr Stephens was a well-known and respected rally sport competitor and a dedicated committee member for various motorsport clubs across the Far South Coast.
If he wasn't competing, he volunteered as an official in all capacities for the ACT and NSW rally series, and, in turn, the Australian Rally Championships.
Mr Stephens was a very active member of the club and had previously been treasurer and secretary.
In 2017, his wife Ms Leigh told Bega District News that Mr Stephens competed on the famous Upper Cobargo and Buckajo Roads since the '70s and often hoped she would get a chance to drive the Bega Rally herself.
"David takes his rallying seriously and I was honoured to be asked to be his co-driver - in my first year in the 'silly seat', we won the 2015 NSW Pace note series, which wasn't a bad start," she had said.
Current Bega Valley Rally director Ian Slater said he would remember his friend as being kind and generous with his time and knowledge.
"He would do anything for you that you asked him," Mr Slater told ACM's Bega District News.
"Sometimes he probably didn't agree with you, but we'd nut it out and we'd move on," he said with a chuckle.
"He was good for the younger people coming into the sport.
"He could mentor them in navigating, although he was a very good driver as well."
Mr Slater was watching television when Mr Stephens' wife tried to call him, but unfortunately, he didn't hear his phone ring.
"She then rang my wife and said, 'David's gone missing in his plane'. I rang her back and she told me the same thing," Mr Slater recalled.
"It was a bit of a shock. I didn't really believe it, and since then we have stayed in contact to find out what's going on.
"Having done a bit of flying myself, it's normally not a risky sport. Car rallying is probably more dangerous.
"We're doing all right. We ring up Lynda all the time to keep in contact with her. It's pretty tough."
A pilot who died when his plane crashed in the NSW Snowy Mountains last week was always "generous with his time and knowledge" and just two months away from retirement, friends say.
Police found David Stephens' body in wreckage in the Snowy Mountains on Friday, July 18, after a multi-day search for a missing plane.
The 74-year-old resident of Brogo, north of Bega on the NSW South Coast, went missing while flying from Wangaratta in northeast of Victoria to Moruya on the south coast.
Mr Stephens worked for decades as a chartered tax accountant and was only two months away from retirement, and his family said they had been hoping to spend more time with him.
On Tuesday, July 15, at 4.35pm, emergency services were notified of a possible plane crash near Dargals Trail in the Snowy Valleys. The wreckage, and Mr Stephens' body, were found a few days later.
In a recent press conference, Riverina Police District Commander, Superintendent Andrew Spliet said the force of the impact of the aircraft was significant.
"You wouldn't recognise it as an aeroplane," he said.
"There was obviously a fair bit of speed into the mountain range, which has completely destroyed that aircraft, and it wouldn't be a survivable collision."
Tony Rettke is a fellow aviator and president of Bega's rural flying club, the Frogs Hollow Flyers. He recounted getting the call from Mr Stephens' wife.
"I got a message, and it was from David's wife. She said something like, 'Hi, this is Lynda Leigh. Could you call me back, please?' She sounded upset," Mr Rettke told ACM's Bega District News.
"Lynda said, 'I'm just calling to let you know, as the president of the Frogs Hollow Flyers and a friend of David's, he's crashed his plane'."
"I had been talking to David a day or two before. He needed to get a couple of emails out for me, and said he would do it at Wangaratta [the airport he left prior to the disappearance]."
Mr Rettke sat in his car as thoughts crossed his mind of what may have happened to his friend.
"It actually knocked me," he said.
"I've been thinking a lot about it. About how David would have felt and what might have happened, and there could be 100 things. [It] could be the aircraft, could be a mistake he's made, could be ... many things."
Mr Rettke said it was sobering to think about, as he, too, had flown on numerous occasions across the past month in varied weather conditions.
Mr Stephens earned his pilot's licence before he began driving in the 1960s, and was immensely proud of his 1966 Beechcraft Debonair, which he christened "Deb".
It was understood that Mr Stephens was a non-instrument-rated pilot, which meant he could only fly when he could see the ground and maintain visual contact with landmarks.
"I do that [kind of flight] all the time. It's called 'tiger country' where you can't land without tearing the wings off. Some people go around it. It's the risk you take," Mr Rettke said.
"I don't know if his plane was completely destroyed. I think it would have looked like newspaper shredded through the trees, because they are built light.
"It's more dangerous to ride a motorbike from here to Canberra, without a doubt. People worry that I swim with sharks, but they're always there."
About 4pm, Thursday, July 17, a rescue helicopter found the crashed plane near its last known GPS location.
Just before 3pm the next day, NSW police found the body of a man in the wreckage.
Mr Rettke remembered his friend as an honest man who served as secretary on the Frogs Hollow Flyers committee, where he was an active member.
"I pulled him onto the committee because he was a member, and I could tell he had a lot to contribute to being a wise person and a flyer for many years," Mr Rettke said.
"He did his job well and had only been doing it for about six months, and had a major role in a recent fly-in with 25 aircraft coming to camp."
Besides being the immensely proud pilot of "Deb", his 1966 Debonair, Mr Stephens had a long history of racing on dirt trails.
As well as a Frogs Hollow Flyer, Mr Stephens was a well-known and respected rally sport competitor and a dedicated committee member for various motorsport clubs across the Far South Coast.
If he wasn't competing, he volunteered as an official in all capacities for the ACT and NSW rally series, and, in turn, the Australian Rally Championships.
Mr Stephens was a very active member of the club and had previously been treasurer and secretary.
In 2017, his wife Ms Leigh told Bega District News that Mr Stephens competed on the famous Upper Cobargo and Buckajo Roads since the '70s and often hoped she would get a chance to drive the Bega Rally herself.
"David takes his rallying seriously and I was honoured to be asked to be his co-driver - in my first year in the 'silly seat', we won the 2015 NSW Pace note series, which wasn't a bad start," she had said.
Current Bega Valley Rally director Ian Slater said he would remember his friend as being kind and generous with his time and knowledge.
"He would do anything for you that you asked him," Mr Slater told ACM's Bega District News.
"Sometimes he probably didn't agree with you, but we'd nut it out and we'd move on," he said with a chuckle.
"He was good for the younger people coming into the sport.
"He could mentor them in navigating, although he was a very good driver as well."
Mr Slater was watching television when Mr Stephens' wife tried to call him, but unfortunately, he didn't hear his phone ring.
"She then rang my wife and said, 'David's gone missing in his plane'. I rang her back and she told me the same thing," Mr Slater recalled.
"It was a bit of a shock. I didn't really believe it, and since then we have stayed in contact to find out what's going on.
"Having done a bit of flying myself, it's normally not a risky sport. Car rallying is probably more dangerous.
"We're doing all right. We ring up Lynda all the time to keep in contact with her. It's pretty tough."
A pilot who died when his plane crashed in the NSW Snowy Mountains last week was always "generous with his time and knowledge" and just two months away from retirement, friends say.
Police found David Stephens' body in wreckage in the Snowy Mountains on Friday, July 18, after a multi-day search for a missing plane.
The 74-year-old resident of Brogo, north of Bega on the NSW South Coast, went missing while flying from Wangaratta in northeast of Victoria to Moruya on the south coast.
Mr Stephens worked for decades as a chartered tax accountant and was only two months away from retirement, and his family said they had been hoping to spend more time with him.
On Tuesday, July 15, at 4.35pm, emergency services were notified of a possible plane crash near Dargals Trail in the Snowy Valleys. The wreckage, and Mr Stephens' body, were found a few days later.
In a recent press conference, Riverina Police District Commander, Superintendent Andrew Spliet said the force of the impact of the aircraft was significant.
"You wouldn't recognise it as an aeroplane," he said.
"There was obviously a fair bit of speed into the mountain range, which has completely destroyed that aircraft, and it wouldn't be a survivable collision."
Tony Rettke is a fellow aviator and president of Bega's rural flying club, the Frogs Hollow Flyers. He recounted getting the call from Mr Stephens' wife.
"I got a message, and it was from David's wife. She said something like, 'Hi, this is Lynda Leigh. Could you call me back, please?' She sounded upset," Mr Rettke told ACM's Bega District News.
"Lynda said, 'I'm just calling to let you know, as the president of the Frogs Hollow Flyers and a friend of David's, he's crashed his plane'."
"I had been talking to David a day or two before. He needed to get a couple of emails out for me, and said he would do it at Wangaratta [the airport he left prior to the disappearance]."
Mr Rettke sat in his car as thoughts crossed his mind of what may have happened to his friend.
"It actually knocked me," he said.
"I've been thinking a lot about it. About how David would have felt and what might have happened, and there could be 100 things. [It] could be the aircraft, could be a mistake he's made, could be ... many things."
Mr Rettke said it was sobering to think about, as he, too, had flown on numerous occasions across the past month in varied weather conditions.
Mr Stephens earned his pilot's licence before he began driving in the 1960s, and was immensely proud of his 1966 Beechcraft Debonair, which he christened "Deb".
It was understood that Mr Stephens was a non-instrument-rated pilot, which meant he could only fly when he could see the ground and maintain visual contact with landmarks.
"I do that [kind of flight] all the time. It's called 'tiger country' where you can't land without tearing the wings off. Some people go around it. It's the risk you take," Mr Rettke said.
"I don't know if his plane was completely destroyed. I think it would have looked like newspaper shredded through the trees, because they are built light.
"It's more dangerous to ride a motorbike from here to Canberra, without a doubt. People worry that I swim with sharks, but they're always there."
About 4pm, Thursday, July 17, a rescue helicopter found the crashed plane near its last known GPS location.
Just before 3pm the next day, NSW police found the body of a man in the wreckage.
Mr Rettke remembered his friend as an honest man who served as secretary on the Frogs Hollow Flyers committee, where he was an active member.
"I pulled him onto the committee because he was a member, and I could tell he had a lot to contribute to being a wise person and a flyer for many years," Mr Rettke said.
"He did his job well and had only been doing it for about six months, and had a major role in a recent fly-in with 25 aircraft coming to camp."
Besides being the immensely proud pilot of "Deb", his 1966 Debonair, Mr Stephens had a long history of racing on dirt trails.
As well as a Frogs Hollow Flyer, Mr Stephens was a well-known and respected rally sport competitor and a dedicated committee member for various motorsport clubs across the Far South Coast.
If he wasn't competing, he volunteered as an official in all capacities for the ACT and NSW rally series, and, in turn, the Australian Rally Championships.
Mr Stephens was a very active member of the club and had previously been treasurer and secretary.
In 2017, his wife Ms Leigh told Bega District News that Mr Stephens competed on the famous Upper Cobargo and Buckajo Roads since the '70s and often hoped she would get a chance to drive the Bega Rally herself.
"David takes his rallying seriously and I was honoured to be asked to be his co-driver - in my first year in the 'silly seat', we won the 2015 NSW Pace note series, which wasn't a bad start," she had said.
Current Bega Valley Rally director Ian Slater said he would remember his friend as being kind and generous with his time and knowledge.
"He would do anything for you that you asked him," Mr Slater told ACM's Bega District News.
"Sometimes he probably didn't agree with you, but we'd nut it out and we'd move on," he said with a chuckle.
"He was good for the younger people coming into the sport.
"He could mentor them in navigating, although he was a very good driver as well."
Mr Slater was watching television when Mr Stephens' wife tried to call him, but unfortunately, he didn't hear his phone ring.
"She then rang my wife and said, 'David's gone missing in his plane'. I rang her back and she told me the same thing," Mr Slater recalled.
"It was a bit of a shock. I didn't really believe it, and since then we have stayed in contact to find out what's going on.
"Having done a bit of flying myself, it's normally not a risky sport. Car rallying is probably more dangerous.
"We're doing all right. We ring up Lynda all the time to keep in contact with her. It's pretty tough."
A pilot who died when his plane crashed in the NSW Snowy Mountains last week was always "generous with his time and knowledge" and just two months away from retirement, friends say.
Police found David Stephens' body in wreckage in the Snowy Mountains on Friday, July 18, after a multi-day search for a missing plane.
The 74-year-old resident of Brogo, north of Bega on the NSW South Coast, went missing while flying from Wangaratta in northeast of Victoria to Moruya on the south coast.
Mr Stephens worked for decades as a chartered tax accountant and was only two months away from retirement, and his family said they had been hoping to spend more time with him.
On Tuesday, July 15, at 4.35pm, emergency services were notified of a possible plane crash near Dargals Trail in the Snowy Valleys. The wreckage, and Mr Stephens' body, were found a few days later.
In a recent press conference, Riverina Police District Commander, Superintendent Andrew Spliet said the force of the impact of the aircraft was significant.
"You wouldn't recognise it as an aeroplane," he said.
"There was obviously a fair bit of speed into the mountain range, which has completely destroyed that aircraft, and it wouldn't be a survivable collision."
Tony Rettke is a fellow aviator and president of Bega's rural flying club, the Frogs Hollow Flyers. He recounted getting the call from Mr Stephens' wife.
"I got a message, and it was from David's wife. She said something like, 'Hi, this is Lynda Leigh. Could you call me back, please?' She sounded upset," Mr Rettke told ACM's Bega District News.
"Lynda said, 'I'm just calling to let you know, as the president of the Frogs Hollow Flyers and a friend of David's, he's crashed his plane'."
"I had been talking to David a day or two before. He needed to get a couple of emails out for me, and said he would do it at Wangaratta [the airport he left prior to the disappearance]."
Mr Rettke sat in his car as thoughts crossed his mind of what may have happened to his friend.
"It actually knocked me," he said.
"I've been thinking a lot about it. About how David would have felt and what might have happened, and there could be 100 things. [It] could be the aircraft, could be a mistake he's made, could be ... many things."
Mr Rettke said it was sobering to think about, as he, too, had flown on numerous occasions across the past month in varied weather conditions.
Mr Stephens earned his pilot's licence before he began driving in the 1960s, and was immensely proud of his 1966 Beechcraft Debonair, which he christened "Deb".
It was understood that Mr Stephens was a non-instrument-rated pilot, which meant he could only fly when he could see the ground and maintain visual contact with landmarks.
"I do that [kind of flight] all the time. It's called 'tiger country' where you can't land without tearing the wings off. Some people go around it. It's the risk you take," Mr Rettke said.
"I don't know if his plane was completely destroyed. I think it would have looked like newspaper shredded through the trees, because they are built light.
"It's more dangerous to ride a motorbike from here to Canberra, without a doubt. People worry that I swim with sharks, but they're always there."
About 4pm, Thursday, July 17, a rescue helicopter found the crashed plane near its last known GPS location.
Just before 3pm the next day, NSW police found the body of a man in the wreckage.
Mr Rettke remembered his friend as an honest man who served as secretary on the Frogs Hollow Flyers committee, where he was an active member.
"I pulled him onto the committee because he was a member, and I could tell he had a lot to contribute to being a wise person and a flyer for many years," Mr Rettke said.
"He did his job well and had only been doing it for about six months, and had a major role in a recent fly-in with 25 aircraft coming to camp."
Besides being the immensely proud pilot of "Deb", his 1966 Debonair, Mr Stephens had a long history of racing on dirt trails.
As well as a Frogs Hollow Flyer, Mr Stephens was a well-known and respected rally sport competitor and a dedicated committee member for various motorsport clubs across the Far South Coast.
If he wasn't competing, he volunteered as an official in all capacities for the ACT and NSW rally series, and, in turn, the Australian Rally Championships.
Mr Stephens was a very active member of the club and had previously been treasurer and secretary.
In 2017, his wife Ms Leigh told Bega District News that Mr Stephens competed on the famous Upper Cobargo and Buckajo Roads since the '70s and often hoped she would get a chance to drive the Bega Rally herself.
"David takes his rallying seriously and I was honoured to be asked to be his co-driver - in my first year in the 'silly seat', we won the 2015 NSW Pace note series, which wasn't a bad start," she had said.
Current Bega Valley Rally director Ian Slater said he would remember his friend as being kind and generous with his time and knowledge.
"He would do anything for you that you asked him," Mr Slater told ACM's Bega District News.
"Sometimes he probably didn't agree with you, but we'd nut it out and we'd move on," he said with a chuckle.
"He was good for the younger people coming into the sport.
"He could mentor them in navigating, although he was a very good driver as well."
Mr Slater was watching television when Mr Stephens' wife tried to call him, but unfortunately, he didn't hear his phone ring.
"She then rang my wife and said, 'David's gone missing in his plane'. I rang her back and she told me the same thing," Mr Slater recalled.
"It was a bit of a shock. I didn't really believe it, and since then we have stayed in contact to find out what's going on.
"Having done a bit of flying myself, it's normally not a risky sport. Car rallying is probably more dangerous.
"We're doing all right. We ring up Lynda all the time to keep in contact with her. It's pretty tough."