At least three people are dead and more are injured after a plane crashed into a group of onlookers in the western German state of Hesse.

Two adults and a child were killed in the incident on Monday morning (AEST), while several more were injured, police said.

Local media reported that the pilot lost control of his Cessna aircraft while trying to land at an airstrip on the Wasserkuppe mountain in the Rhoen region at around 3.45pm on Sunday local time.

Police said the victims, two women and a 10-year-old boy, were on a path next to an airfield when the tragedy occurred.

They said the Cessna was attempting to take off after an aborted landing manoeuvre, but failed to gain lift and broke through a barrier, hitting the three.

A police statement said five people were injured, including all four on board the plane. Emergency services were at the scene.

The statement said police are still working to identify the three victims, 

The 56-year-old pilot and three passengers were taken to hospital with injuries, and an eyewitness suffered severe shock.

The plane, carrying four passengers, came from the Mannheim area of southwestern Germany and had been on an excursion to the Wasserkuppe.

The weather was reportedly fair at the time, and the cause of the crash is not yet known.

Bild newspaper reported that the passengers were taken to hospital, and an eyewitness suffered a severe shock.

The aircraft is reported to have been privately owned.

Hesse state Prime Minister Volker Bouffier and Interior Minister Peter Beuth said they were “deeply affected” by the crash on the state chancellery Twitter page, and thanked the emergency services for their commitment.

Wasserkuppe’s mountain airstrip is popular with gliding clubs and light aircraft pilots.

-with AAP