A just released preliminary report on the investigation into a fatal plane crash on the South Coast confirms eyewitness accounts that the aircraft broke apart in flight.
The light plane which has just left Santa Paula Airport June 1st went down near Solimar Beach, about seven miles northwest of Ventura. Pilot Michael Brannigan of Lake Sherwood died in the accident.
National Transportation Safety Board investigators say debris from the single engine Cessna 180 was strewn over several hundred feet of hillsides north of Highway 101. Eyewitnesses told investigators say they heard what sounded like engine trouble with the plane, and then saw that the engine, and wings had separated from the aircraft.
The wreckage was taken to another location for further examination, so investigators can try to nail down what led to the plane’s disintegration.
