Police Identify Pilot, Flight Student Killed In Crash
MOUNT MORRIS TOWNSHIP (WWJ/AP) - State police say an 81-year-old pilot and his 20-year-old passenger were killed when a small plane went down in Genesee County near Flint.
The single-engine Taylor craft plane crashed Wednesday about a half-mile east of Dalton Airport in Mount Morris Township.
Elizabeth Ishim Corey, of the Federal Aviation Administration said the plane successfully took off from Flushing at around 7:30 a.m., but then disappeared.
"A concerned family member notified us that the aircraft did not reach is destination of Owosso Airport in Owosso, Michigan," Corey said, in a WWJ interview Wednesday evening. "A notice of missing aircraft went out … local search and rescue started looking along the flight path."
Searchers found the plane in heavy thickets at around 4 p.m. Corey said the pilot did not file a flight plan which slowed the search effort.
State police told local station WEYI-TV that those killed were pilot Jerry Zerbe and passenger Bryce Frownfelter. WLEW reported Frownfelter was taking flying lessons and attended Western Michigan University.
The National Transportation Safety Board was expected to release more details about the crash later Thursday. The FAA and NTSB are investigating why the plane went down — but the investigation is expected to take several months to a year.
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