Story originally printed in the Tomah Journal or online at www.tomahjournal.com
Published - Friday, July 25, 2008
Federal officials looking into single-engine aircraft mishap at Sparta airport
SPARTA — Federal aviation officials are investigating what caused a single-engine aircraft crash Friday at the Sparta/Fort McCoy Airport that injured one aboard.
Pilot John D. Linder, of Mankato, Minn., aborted takeoff, skidded off the east/west runway, and slid through grass and brush about 10:30 p.m. after refueling, said Fort McCoy spokeswoman Linda Fournier.
A female passenger was taken to a La Crosse hospital with non-life threatening injuries, she said. The names of the three passengers were not released.
“The good news is that it could have been a lot worse than it was,” Fournier said.
The plane was heading east, but its flight plan was not available.
The investigation is expected to take several weeks while officials review the aircraft’s maintenance records and interview the pilot, passengers and air traffic control operators, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Tony Molinaro.
The Piper Cherokee plane is owned by Prescott Flying Club of South St. Paul, Minn., he said.
A National Transportation Safety Board investigator also handling the investigation was unavailable Tuesday.
This is the first plane crash at the airport in about 10 years, Fournier said.
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