WILLIAMS, Az. (KGTV/KNXV) — Police in Williams, Arizona, say three people died in a small plane crash in the area on Tuesday, and ABC 10News has learned the aircraft was registered to an Otay Mesa business.
According to FlightAware.com, the Piper Fixed Wing single-engine plane, which was registered to First Flight Corporation, took off from the Brown Field Airport in Otay Mesa at 6:29 p.m. Sunday and landed in the Las Vegas area later that night. The flight tracking website indicates the plane had four more flights since then and was last seen near Kingman, Arizona, at 10:38 a.m. Tuesday.
According to the Williams Police Department, the plane had refueled at the H.A. Clark Memorial Airport and had just taken off before the crash. Authorities say the plane appeared to lose power after takeoff and went down in a nearby field.
"A single-engine Piper PA-28 crashed after departing H.A. Clark Memorial Field Airport in Williams, Arizona, around 12:20 p.m. local time Tuesday," according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
Williams police confirmed there were three people on board the plane and none of them survived the crash.
"The pilot aircraft has been identified as 31 year old Hyemoon Kim, hailing from South Korea. Additionally, the second victim has been identified as 44 year old Christopher Evans, a resident of La Mesa, California. Our thoughts and condolences go out to the families and friends of these individuals during this difficult time," the department said.
What caused the crash is still under investigation by multiple agencies, including the NTSB, FAA, Coconino County Medical Examiner’s Office, and the Williams Police Department.
ABC 10News called First Flight Corporation in an attempt to gather more information about the crash.
"We can't say anything because this is still under investigation," the person who picked up the phone told 10News.
