Utah Plane Crash Leaves 4 Dead
St. George, Utah authorities are reporting that a Cessna 172, which went down early Saturday morning, has killed all four passengers on board.
The plane’s wreckage was found around 6 a.m., according to The Huffington Post, and authorites are not yet sure if the plane crashed after takeoff, or if it missed its landing.
The plane was found about 400 feet away from the runway at the municipal airport, according to Marc Mortenson, assistant to the St. George city manager.
CBS News reports that Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor stated that the plane went down under “unknown circumstances,” but that an investigation into the crash is ongoing. Names of those killed have not yet been released, but should be either late Saturday or early Sunday.
National Weather Service meteorologist Monica Traphagan told The Spectrum of St. George, according to The Washington Post, that the area did see windy conditions aon Friday and later Saturday, but there was no sever weather reported in the early hours of Saturday.
According to CBS News, Mortenson stated that the airport does not have a radio tower, but that pilots use an automated system in order communicate with each other during take off and landing. He also stated that the airport has been in operation at its present location for about one and a half years.
The wreckage was found, according to CBS News, by an airport crew that was making a routine safety check of the property early Saturday. An FAA investigation to determine the cause can take months.
