Purdue News
Purdue News
The Federal Aviation Administration inspected the site and reviewed tapes from the control tower and statements from four witnesses this morning. The FAA investigator said he plans to speak to the pilot, John T. Lawler, 80, in a few days to learn more. Witnesses at the airport told police that they saw the plane approaching slowly from the south, flying very low and wobbly. It banked to the west, and they then lost sight of it in the hills and trees.
The plane crashed at 5:23 p.m. about a quarter mile east of the runway into a sandy bank in a gravel mining area owned by Purdue. The front section of the plane was damaged, but the fuselage remained intact. There was no fire. Lawler had been en route from Akron, Ohio, to West Lafayette to visit friends when the accident occurred. There were no other passengers in the plane.
Purdue airport personnel have moved Lawler's single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza airplane to a nearby hangar.
The FAA official said initial inspection indicated that the plane still had fuel on board and that the engines appeared to have been working. All information will be turned over to the National Transportation Safety Board, which is responsible for releasing any findings. The FAA indicated that its portion of the investigation will take a few weeks to complete.
Writer: Jeanne V. Norberg, director, University News Service, (765) 494-2084; e-mail jeanne_norberg@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu
