The National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report on its investigation of the Midland plane crash that killed a father and son last month.
Midlanders John Cooper, 39, and Gavyn Cooper, 16, died in a plane crash on May 31 shortly after John Cooper took off from a runway at Midland International Airport.
The report stated Cooper and his son took off around 7:20 p.m. that day for Ruidoso, N.M., as a personal flight.
During the initial climb, the airplane, a Cirrus SR22, was reportedly seen entering a right descending turn before an uncontrolled descent sent the plane crashing into the runway, the report detailed.
The on-scene examination of the wreckage revealed no evidence of in-flight airframe, engine or flight control malfunction or failure, the report stated.
John Cooper was listed as a student pilot in the report. Student pilots are not permitted to have passengers onboard until they obtain a private or recreational pilot’s license, the Federal Aviation Authority’s website stated.
CBS 7 reported that a final report could take months to be completed.
