The twin-engine Piper turbo prop that crashed in a neighborhood in Lafayette, killing five of the six onboard including Saints and WDSU Sports Reporter Carley McCord, was airborne less than minute.
The initial report states the plane took off and climbed to 925 feet in 30-seconds. The craft was going just about 200 miles an hour when it dipped its left wing by 35-degrees and went into a roll and began losing altitude.
Air traffic Control issued a low altitude alert to the plane, but got no response. Estimates say the plane started dropping precipitously as the wings rolled to 70-degrees. Losing lift from the wings, the plane went into a steep dive and crashed.
The twin engine plane sliced through trees and power lines before crashing on to Verot School Road and sliding into the parking lot of a Post Office.
According to the Times-Picayune/New Orleans Advocate reported numerous witnesses say the plane had banked over during its decent, at the last moment, the wings leveled out before hitting the ground.
The NTSB says this is just the initial report on the incident. It could take upwards to a year-and-a half before a final report is issued and the cause of the crash is determined.
Read the NTSB Initial Report: Click Here.
