Two people were killed on Thursday when a small plane crashed near an airfield in Bogalusa, Louisiana.
Emergency personnel responded at approximately 10:48 a.m. on Aug. 6 to the area of George R. Carr Memorial Airfield, the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. The National Transportation Safety Board identified the aircraft involved as a Beech H35 and said it is investigating the crash.
The victims were identified as William “Bill” Day, 68, and his wife, Tommie Day, 69, both of Seguin, Texas, according to an update from the sheriff’s office.
Flight-tracking data from FlightAware shows an aircraft with registration number N5409D departed Elm Creek Airpark in Seguin at 6:17 a.m. CDT on Thursday and arrived at George R. Carr Memorial Airfield in Bogalusa at 9:12 a.m. The flight covered 504 miles and lasted approximately 2 hours and 55 minutes, according to the tracking service.
The crash was reported approximately an hour and a half after the aircraft arrived in Bogalusa.
Both occupants were pronounced dead at the scene, the sheriff’s office said. Authorities initially withheld their identities while relatives were contacted. The agency later said the victims’ next of kin had been notified.
The cause of the crash remained under investigation Friday. The sheriff’s office said the Federal Aviation Administration had been notified and would lead the investigation into the circumstances of the crash with assistance from local authorities. The NTSB separately confirmed through its official newsroom account that it is investigating the accident.
No cause had been publicly announced as of Friday.
FAA aircraft registration records show that N5409D is a 1957 Beech H35 with serial number D-4912. The agency classifies the plane as a fixed-wing, single-engine aircraft with a reciprocating engine. The aircraft is registered to William L. Day of Seguin, according to the FAA database.
FAA records also list the aircraft’s engine as a Continental O-470 series. Its registration status is listed as valid, with a certificate issued in July 2023 and an expiration date in July 2030.
Authorities have not released additional details about what occurred immediately before the crash.
“Members of the public are asked to avoid the area while investigators and emergency personnel complete their work,” the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office said.
The Louisiana crash came two days after another fatal small-plane crash in Oregon, where 48-year-old Steven Nicholas Charlton died after deliberately crashing a Cirrus SR22T in a forested area west of Bend on Aug. 4.
Charlton had been scheduled to appear in court Aug. 6 after being indicted on five felony counts of first-degree invasion of personal privacy. Authorities said Charlton was the only person aboard, and no one else was injured.