THE 82-year-old pilot of a microlight aircraft was taken to hospital with two broken legs after his plane crashed into a ditch at Upper Stoke, near Rochester, today.

Firefighters from Strood cut the man free from the aircraft, which had nose-dived into a large ditch near the sea wall at Stoke, just after 2pm today.

The man, who has not yet been named, is the oldest member of the Medway Microlight Flight Training Centre, which has a landing strip at nearby Middle Stoke.

Rescuers said the pilot told them the aircraft's aileron rudders had jammed, causing it to crash

A spokesman for Medway Ambulance Station said the man was conscious and had remained "talkative" while he was being cut free.

It is thought he had had taken off from the training centre just before the crash.

The Kent Air Ambulance was called but the pilot was taken to hospital by road.