A German couple had a lucky escape after their light aircraft hit a 380,000 volt power line and then hung upside down from a wheel for nearly three hours.

Police officer Edmund Martin said: "They had a very, very lucky accident."

Emergency services freed the pair suspended 20 metres (65 feet) from the ground with a hydraulic lift after a helicopter rescue was ruled out as too dangerous.

The German-registered plane was about to land at the small airport Durach in the Allgaeu region when the accident happened.

The 65-year-old pilot and his elderly woman passenger escaped serious injury in the 150-strong rescue operation.

Constant contact was maintained with the couple by radio but rescuers said their physical condition had deteriorated steadily over the several hours.

The damaged power line connects Austria's Tyrol region with western Germany's Ruhrgebiet region.

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