Downed aircraft kills pilot

A Darien man was killed Wednesday after crashing his aircraft into a Town of Walworth airfield.

Walworth County Sheriffs Department and Walworth Fire and Rescue Units responded to a report of an Ultralight Aircraft going down in a cornfield alongside the Big Foot Airfield on Wednesday, Aug. 29, at approximately 8:30 a.m. The airfield is located at W7145 Beloit Road in the Town of Walworth.

John C. Evans, 61, of Darien, was the pilot and sole occupant of the Ultralight. He died at the hospital soon after the crash occurred.

The initial investigation revealed that shortly after takeoff, the Ultralight, which is a single- or two-person aircraft typically flown for short distances at low altitudes, banked right and crashed into the cornfield adjacent to the grass runway. Evans was conscious when deputies arrived on scene and was able to give a brief statement.

After Evans was removed from the downed craft and placed into the ambulance, he lost consciousness. Flight For Life was called to transport him from a local hospital but Evans died prior to its arrival.

The Federal Aviation Administration was contacted. Since an Ultralight does not contain a tail wing number, it is not a plane by definition and therefore not investigated as a “plane crash.”

An autopsy will be performed later this week to determine the exact cause of death.

 

Comments are closed.