Pilot Killed In Small Plane Crash Near Worcester Airport
WORCESTER (CBS) - A pilot was killed in a small plane crash near the Worcester Airport Saturday morning.
The single-engine plane was taking off just before 8 a.m.when it went off the runway and crashed in the woods off Coppage Drive.
The pilot, Gary Weller, 66, of Putnam, Conn., was the only person on board. Weller did not file a flight plan so it's unclear where he was flying, according to the Worcester Country District Attorney's Office.
First responders were able to pull him from the wreckage of the Mooney M20 aircraft, but State Police said he died at the scene.
Construction worker Dylon DeBoise, who was working near the airport, said the aircraft went into a nose dive.
"It was very low. It looked like it was right above the trees. Again, it went up a little bit and then spun over, like almost upside down and then just went straight down," he told WBZ NewsRadio 1030.
Deboise said the plane did not catch on fire after it crashed.
"This is a difficult day for all of us at Worcester Regional Airport," Massachusetts Port Authority said in a public statement. "We are very sad to hear that the pilot has passed and we wish his family and friends solace in this time."
The airport remained open Saturday.
The incident remains under investigation.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Kim Tunnicliffe reports
No other information is available at this point in the investigation.
