The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released a preliminary report on last month’s plane crash that killed four southern Alberta men in the U.S.
Pilot Bill Kaupp and his son Clint, along with family friends Tim Mueller and Ron McKenzie, departed from Grand Junction, Colo. en route to Albuquerque, N.M. on Feb. 22.
About 30 minutes after takeoff, the aircraft dropped off the radar. No further communication between the airplane and air traffic control facilities has been located, according to the NTSB.
Watch below from March 6: All four men came from farm families with long-established roots in the area. Here’s Joe Scarpelli.
All four men from the Warner, Alta. area were found dead the next day in a mountainous area near the Utah/Colorado state line.
“Undetermined meteorological conditions prevailed,” the report says. “No flight plan was filed for the flight.”
No mechanical deficiencies were found to be responsible for the crash, though a NTSB spokesperson told Global News that does not mean it was a pilot error, as the exact cause of the crash is still under investigation.
“No evidence of any pre- or post-impact fire was observed,” the report reads.
The NTSB said it could take up to 18 months before the investigation is complete and a final report is submitted.