NTSB says there was no distress call from the plane before the crash that killed five people

DARE COUNTY, N.C. (WITN) – A preliminary report into a plane crash last month that killed five people on the Outer Banks shows there were no emergency calls from the pilot before the crash.

The National Transportation Safety Board yesterday released its report into the September 28 crash at Wright Brothers National Memorial’s First Flight Airport.

The National Park says Shashwat Adhikari, 31, of Silver Spring, Maryland; Jason Campbell, 43, of Southern Pines; Kate Neely, 39, of Southern Pines; Matthew Fassnacht, 44, of Marietta, Georgia; and a 6-year-old child were killed.

The Cirrus SR-22 plane crashed and caught fire in a wooded area while trying to land at the airport.

The 2023 single-engine, fixed-wing aircraft was owned by Pantheon Aviation LLC of Franklin.

The NTSB says the plane made a second approach and witnesses said it was “high and fast.” The report says the car “made a steep left turn halfway down the runway and struck the top of 50-foot trees.”

The plane then hit more trees before coming to a stop in a forest 300 feet east of the runway, where it caught fire.

Federal investigators are expected to issue a final report on the fatal crash within a year to 18 months.