A 61-year-old man has been electrocuted and died when trying to dislodge his model airplane from a power line with a metal pole.

The incident took place in a field near the municipality of Gretzenbach in the district of Olten in the Swiss canton of Solothurn on Tuesday afternoon.

The police said in a statement that the victim, name not disclosed, was electrocuted and his body was found in a field following his attempts to remove his model plane from an overhanging power line.

According to the news site Blick, the model airplane became tangled in the power line when a strong gust caught hold of it as the 61-year-old man was flying it.

In an attempt to dislodge his model plane, the man reportedly used an aluminium pole and unknowingly electrocuted himself in the process.

Following the fatal shock, the emergency services arrived on the scene and could only pronounce the man dead.

It is unclear who first found the man’s corpse and alerted the local authorities.

The man’s body has been sent for an autopsy as the police investigation continues.