A private twin-engine airplane crashed after takeoff Wednesday morning from the Boone County Regional Airport in Harrison.
Pilot George Atiyeh, 66, of Lyons, Ore., was airlifted to Mercy Hospital in Springfield, Mo., for treatment of injuries suffered in the crash, according to a news release from the Boone County sheriff's office.
Atiyeh is the nephew of Victor Atiyeh, who was governor of Oregon from 1979-87, according to The Oregonian.
George Atiyeh was the only person on board the 1964 Piper Twin Comanche at the time of the crash, according to the sheriff's office. Mercy Hospital listed him in critical condition late Wednesday afternoon.
Judy McCutcheon, manager of the airport, said Atiyeh planned to fly the plane to Oregon.
Atiyeh took off without using the full length of the 6,160-foot runway, McCutcheon said. After being in the air for about 80 feet, the plane abruptly banked to the left and crashed in a field on the airport property, she said.
McCutcheon said it wasn't normal for a plane taking off from that airport to turn that soon.
"I honestly don't know what happened," she said. "He didn't go far. He got up in the air and banked left and came down."
McCutcheon said Atiyeh was unconscious when a helicopter arrived to take him to the hospital in Springfield.
The crash site has been secured, McCutcheon said. Investigators were expected to arrive Wednesday evening from the National Transportation Safety Board.
The airport has served Boone County since 1952. It has 8,500 annual takeoffs and landings, according to the airport's website, boonecountyairport.com. The airport is 3 miles northwest of downtown Harrison.
The airport is served by Seaport Airlines, which has flights to Memphis and Kansas City, Mo., six days a week.
Atiyeh is an activist and founder of Friends of Opal Creek, according to The Oregonian. The organization is now the Opal Creek Ancient Forest Center. Its mission is to protect the Opal Creek watershed in Oregon.
Metro on 07/03/2014