Authorities are looking into what caused a tiny plane crash in upstate New York State that claimed one life.
The Federal Aviation Administration said that the aircraft, a single-engine Cessna 208B used for skydiving flights, went down just before 1 p.m. local time on Saturday.
According to a statement from the Niagara County Sheriff’s office, the plane was returning to a nearby airfield to land after its load of skydivers had jumped. The number of divers on board the aircraft is unknown, according to the office.
Northeast of Fort Niagara State Park is where the plane crashed. When the aircraft crashed, the pilot was the only one inside. According to the office, the plane had been performing parachute operations.
The family had not yet been notified, thus the pilot’s name had not been disclosed. At a press conference on Saturday, Niagara County Sheriff Michael Filicetti stated that the crash caused a brush fire that was put out by volunteers from the Youngstown Volunteer Co.
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Filicetti referred to the collision as “an unfortunate accident” and stated that local authorities are collaborating with federal investigators to ascertain the cause.
“Well, I think this is like any other emergency-type incident. … You get here, you want to try to preserve life. Unfortunately, in this case, we couldn’t do that,” Filicetti stated on Saturday.
Late on Saturday, National Transportation Safety Board investigators showed up at the scene.
The pilot, the aircraft, and the surroundings at the scene of the disaster will all be the subject of an NTSB investigation. After that, the wreckage will be relocated for more analysis.
