World Loss Log: 3 - 16 February, 2009

Late reports

1.2, crash, fatalities

US: a small aircraft struggled to stay on course in snowy weather and its pilot reported being low on fuel before it crashed in West Virginia, killing all six people on board. The twin engine Piper PA-34’s pilot issued an emergency call on the radio shortly before witnesses said it struck a power line and crashed in a wooded area near the Ohio and Kentucky state lines. The aircraft was destroyed. Investigators had not identified any of the aircraft’s occupants, nor determined the flight’s origin or destination. The aircraft’s intended destination was not the nearby Tri-State Airport in Kenova, where it was trying to land. The airport’s control tower was in contact with the pilot about 15 minutes before the crash. It was also snowing at the time, causing poor visibility, but it is not yet known if weather contributed to the crash. An official report on the cause will not be released for about a year. Officials initially said three people had died in the crash, but later revised the death toll to six. The three additional bodies were found tangled in the wreckage.