Beckington man Andrew Hoare has been named as one of the victims who died aboard the doomed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, along with Dutch wife Estella and their two children, Jasper, 15, and Friso, 12.
Mr Hoare, 59, grew up in Beckington near Frome in Somerset and moved to Luxembourg in the 1980s. He married Estella in Mendip in 1998.
The family - who were due to visit Bath in a few weeks time for a 60th anniversary party - were on their way to Malaysia for a holiday when the airline crashed in eastern Ukraine on Thursday, apparently shot out of the sky.
Mr Hoare's family released a statement on Saturday saying: "Andrew was born and bred in Somerset and was a greatly loved member of a large family. He was a warm, funny and wonderful man whose smile and character lit up a room.
"Estella was beautiful, intelligent, spoke five languages fluently and had a very infectious laugh. Jasper had a brilliant young mind and Friso was a talented musician and peacemaker. They made frequent visits to both the Netherlands and England to keep in touch with all branches of the family and friends.
"Family was everything to them and they will all be terribly missed."
Mr Hoare's brother Hugo, from East Grinstead, West Sussex, said he was a "devoted family man" who had been planning to join the rest of the family for a 60th anniversary party in Bath in just a few weeks' time, a gathering which will now be a chance to share their memories of him.
He said: "The best way to describe him is loyal. He's one of the nicest guys you could ever meet. His smile could light up a room. He was just a very lovely, family-orientated man."
Mr Hoare also had a stepson, Rink Schoofs, 24, who did not get on the flight.
