A 60-year-old man has been charged with manslaughter following the deaths 18 months ago of a pilot and his passenger in a microlight crash.

The victims, Daniel Attubato, aged 35, from Maidstone, and Terry Stewart, 50, from Orpington, died when their aircraft plunged to the ground near cliffs at Eastchurch, near Sheerness, in August 2004.

Police have now revealed that John Whelan, from Romford, Essex, will appear at Sittingbourne Magistrates Court February 7 accused of manslaughter.

The crash was investigated by the Air Accidents Investigations Branch of the Department for Transport.