A PILOT cut free from the wreckage of his plane after it crashed near Wimborne is now in a stable condition.

The man had to be airlifted to hospital after the de Havilland Tiger Moth he was flying dropped into a field near Moor Crichel village on Sunday afternoon.

His passenger in the biplane, 26-year-old Orlando Rogers, was taken to hospital by Portland Coastguard but later died from his injuries.

Mr Rogers, a former Royal Marine from Poole, had starred in two ITV documentaries.

Commandos on the Frontline, featured him on tour as a troop commander, while Go Commando followed his 55 day trans-Atlantic row.

Filmmaker Chris Terrill has paid tribute to a charismatic ‘action man’ and ‘larger than life’ character who squeezed the most into his short life.

“He was such an extraordinary young man,” Mr Terrill said.

“He was only 21 when I first met him but seemed to have achieved so much.

“Everyone was in awe of him.”

Mr Rogers quickly became a star of the shows, which will help ensure he is never forgotten, Mr Terrill said.

He added: “He was a Royal Marine who considered rowing the Atlantic a holiday. No one is surprised that he went in action.

“Anything that represented a challenge both to his psyche and to his safety was something that attracted him.”

The East Dorset coroner is awaiting the results of a post mortem.

Experts from the Air Accident Investigation Branch have launched an enquiry into how the 1930s plane, based at Compton Abbas airfield, came to drop from 1,500feet.

The pilot’s family are asking for privacy while the AAIB case continues.