Captain Brian Horrell (52), an Auckland-based pilot with more than 22 years' experience, was one of four Air New Zealand staff on board the Airbus A320 which crashed into the Mediterranean Sea as it made its final approach to Perpignan Airport after an assessment flight.
The others were Murray White (37), of Auckland, Michael Gyles (49), of Christchurch, and Noel Marsh (35), of Christchurch.
Civil Aviation Authority airworthiness inspector Jeremy Cook (58), of Wellington, was the other New Zealander killed.
The two German pilots of the plane were also killed.
Capt Horrell's parents, Herbert and Moira, are both in their 80s and live in Tuatapere.
Capt Horrell's cousin, Ray Horrell, told the Otago Daily Times the couple were struggling to come to terms with the disaster.
"It's just been awful. They are just shattered, especially losing one of their own [children] before they [die] themselves," he said.
Mrs Horrell was holding up relatively well and was trying to be strong for her husband and the other members of what Mr Horrell called a tight-knit family.
The couple's son began his career as a pilot in Christchurch before being transferred to the company's Auckland headquarters.
The family said Capt Horrell's wife, Shelley, had received excellent support from Air New Zealand staff.
The couple have two teenage children.
It was unclear whether she would fly out with other relatives to France overnight or wait at home for more news.
Capt Horrell's parents would not be travelling.
Nothing was known of any distress calls or communications with air traffic controllers before the aircraft crashed, Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe said.
However, an aviation enthusiast in France who monitored radio traffic reported the last message from the aircraft.
" . . . this is the last time we heard the pilot . . . Not a single mayday, nothing," the listener, called Phillippe, said.
The aircraft, freshly painted in Air New Zealand livery, could be seen sitting on the seabed with its tail clearly visible.
A huge team of searchers and specialists descended on southern France at first light yesterday to assist in the aftermath of the crash.
The 150-seat A320 was being assessed by a team of three Air New Zealand engineers and one of the company's most experienced A320 captains before being returned to Air New Zealand after a two-year lease to XL Airlines, of Germany.
Capt Horrell was sitting in the jump seat behind the German pilots, Mr Fyfe said.
The aircraft had been in the air for about two hours and had undergone a series of manoeuvres as part of the assessment of its condition and performance.
It was on its final approach to Perpignan when it crashed.
The crash came on the 29th anniversary of the Erebus disaster - 237 passengers and 20 Air NZ crew were killed when Flight 901 crashed on Mt Erebus on November 28, 1979.
Prime Minister John Key, who expressed his "sincere condolences" to the friends, families and colleagues of the five New Zealanders, hoped a New Zealand air accident investigator would be able to play an official role in the French inquiry into the Airbus crash.
The Transport Accident Investigation Commission deputy chief investigator, Ken Matthews, left for Perpignan overnight, initially with "observer" status at the crash site.
Mr Key said Mr Matthews' attendance was "appropriate", and it was likely he would become an active member of the inquiry.
"He will initially go as an observer; that's what the rules indicate, but it may well be he can play a greater role," he said.
