Shocked communities on both sides of Scotland are in mourning for a young couple who died when their plane crashed into a hillside as they headed for a family break in the Hebrides.
Engineer David Rous, 28, and his doctor wife Margaret Ann Maclean, 37, set off from Newport-on-Tay on Saturday to spend time with relatives on the isle of Tiree.
Their PA28 Piper Cherokee crashed at Bein Nan Lus above Loch Etive in the Glen Kinglass area of Argyll.
Mr Rous, an experienced pilot and the owner of the plane, is understood to have been at the controls.
The aircraft had taken off from Dundee Airport.
Plane wreckage – and the couple’s bodies – were found at 8pm after an extensive search by mountain rescuers, the police, the coastguard and the ambulance service.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency confirmed that three coastguard teams were sent to the scene, with teams from Oban and Lochgoilhead involved.
The volunteer crew of the Oban Lifeboat had launched at 1.20pm to search Loch Etive for a light aircraft that had, according to separate reports from two hillwalkers in Ardmaddy, “flown at a steep angle” in nearby hills and then been lost from radar.
Despite a search of the loch and scouring of the hills on each side to a height of 300ft, the crew found nothing and were stood down by the coastguard.
A land search continued by coastguard teams and Oban Mountain Rescue Team. Two rescue helicopters joined the operation.
Paul Arbuckle at the Met Office in Aberdeen said: “Conditions at the time were misty, with low cloud and with a fresh to strong north-westerly wind.”
Police forensic teams were only able to access the remote spot yesterday afternoon.
Chief Inspector Fergus Byrne, is leading the police inquiry into the accident.
He said specialist officers had attended at the crash site to “recover the victims, investigate the circumstances and remove the wreckage”.
He added: “The area is very remote and the crash site extensive and as such it will take a considerable amount of time to complete our work.”
It is understood that Dr Maclean, a medical doctor, went to school on Tiree.
News of the tragedy has rocked the communities of Newport-on-Tay, where the couple were living, and Tiree, where residents rallied round relatives.
Argyll and Bute councillor Mary-Jean Devon said: “This is just so sad. It’s a tragic, tragic accident with the loss of such young lives.
“An island is a big family. Although the girl wasn’t living at home she was still part of that family.”
The couple were described as “perfect angels” by shocked colleagues of Dr Maclean, who worked at Dundee’s Stobswell Medical Centre.
In Dundee, those who knew the couple said they had been left stunned by the tragedy.
“We are all shocked by this dreadful news,” said one friend who used to work with Dr Maclean.
“Margaret Ann was a fantastic doctor and all her patients loved her.
“She and David were complete angels and all their friends and colleagues are completely and utterly devastated to lose them.”
The couple were due to visit Dr Maclean’s widowed mother Catriona at her home at Kilmoluaig on Tiree. Dr Maclean’s aunt Johann also lives on the island.
An incident unit remains at the emergency services rendezvous site at Inverawe.
Anyone with information about the tragedy has been urged to contact police on 101.
An Air Accident Investigation Branch inquiry will follow.