HENDERSON, Ky. (WEHT) – The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released a preliminary report on the plane crash near Whitesville that killed two people in September.
According to the report, pilot Connor Quisenberry contacted air traffic control at 8:44 p.m., roughly 5 minutes before the last known automatic positioning signal. The controller advised the pilot of heavy to extreme weather near the plane’s position. A few minutes later, instructor Timothy McKellar told the controller that the plane was “getting blown around like crazy.”
The report says the controller then tried to get the plane to turn 90 degrees, with McKellar replying that they were in “pretty extreme turbulence.” The flight track showed a continuing right descending turn, and no further communications were received from the plane. The plane’s last automatic positioning signal was at an altitude of 2,200 feet and about 1,000 feet northwest of the 25-acre wooded area where the debris field was found.
The report states that examination of the debris did not reveal any anomalous findings that would suggest the plane had any mechanical issues that would have contributed to the crash.
