(WWJ) — Authorities are investigating after a small plane crashed in Washtenaw County Monday afternoon, leaving a flight instructor dead and a student hospitalized.
The crash happened near the intersection of Michigan Avenue and Lima Center Road, near the Washtenaw-Lenawee County border, around 1 p.m.
Michigan State Police officials say preliminary information indicates the flight was a training flight with a flight instructor and one student. The flight instructor, a 46-year-old man from Dearborn, was killed in the crash.
The student, a 22-year-old University of Michigan student from North Carolina, was taken to U of M Hospital to be treated for his injuries. His condition was not disclosed.
Authorities did not immediately specify who was piloting the plane, which is a single-engine Piper Cherokee (P28A) registered to Silvered Wings, LLC, in Howell. The plane took off from Ann Arbor around 11:30 a.m.
Authorities told WWJ the student was driven to Clinton High School, where a helicopter landed and took him to University of Michigan Hospital.
The cause of the crash is not yet known.
The FAA is at the scene investigating, as of 6 p.m. Monday. NTSB officials are expected to arrive to the scene Tuesday morning. As the crash is still an active scene, MSP officials are asking the public to stay away from the area. Troopers will be on scene for scene security.
Ken Krause, who lives in the area, witnessed the crash. He told WWJ's Chris Keyzer the plane was at about 1,000 feet of elevation when it "came straight down and crash landed."
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