Pilot In Critical Condition After Plane Nose-Dives, Crashes In St. Clair County
KIMBALL TWP. (WWJ/AP) - Authorities say a 64-year-old man is in critical condition after the ultralight airplane he was flying went down in St. Clair County.
The sheriff's department said Douglas Widmar, of New Baltimore, took off around 6 p.m. Thursday from a private air strip on Sturdevant Road in Kimball Township, about 50 miles northeast of Detroit.
Shortly after he left the ground, witnesses say the plane gained an altitude of 100-150 feet when the nose dipped once. The plane then nose-dived toward the ground, landing wing first, then flipped over before landing upright.
Widmar was the only person on the plane. He was transported to Lake Huron Medical Center in Port Huron and then taken by helicopter to Royal Oak Beaumont Hospital with multiple injuries. He was last reported in critical condition.
The Federal Aviation Administration will begin investigating the crash Friday morning.
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