COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Federal aviation officials are blaming power loss for a central Missouri plane crash that left three men seriously injured.
The Columbia Daily Tribune reports that the National Transportation Safety Board has issued its preliminary report into last month’s Fulton crash. The report says the pilot of the twin-engine Cessna 401A lost power to one of engines after takeoff.
The report says the pilot shut down the opposite engine when he saw he would not be able to stop on the runway. One fuel tank was ruptured, but there was no fire. Several witnesses called 911.
The plane got about 10 feet into the air before it came back down, ran off the runway and landed in a ditch. The complete investigation will take six to 12 months to complete.