A Woodstock man was killed early Saturday when the small plane he was piloting crashed near the Cherokee County airport, a sheriff’s official said.
No one else was on board, Lt. Jay Baker said. The pilot has been identified as Steven Silver, 69.
The crash happened shortly after midnight near the end of the runway of the airport, which is at 1350 Bishop Road in Ball Ground, Baker said.
Officials believe the pilot was attempting to land, Baker said. The twin-engine Cessna 421 brought down power lines and crashed into a retention pond just east of the runway.
“The plane caught fire upon impact but was quickly extinguished by firefighters,” Baker said.
Georgia Power crews repaired two utility poles that were knocked down in the crash, Channel 2 Action News reported.
Officials from the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating, according to Channel 2. A full report on the crash could take months.
It's the second fatal plane crash at a regional airport near metro Atlanta within the past month. In February, two people were killed when a single-engine plane went down at the Barrow County airport.
About the Author
