The pilot of a single-engine plane was flying near the bottom of clouds when the plane crashed into treetops on Pope County's Crow Mountain, killing all four people aboard, including himself, a preliminary report said.
The report, released by the National Transportation Safety Board, said that Russellville Regional Airport, where the plane took off the morning of Oct. 29, was 404 feet above sea level. The point at which the plane crashed into the treetops was about 620 feet above sea level and about 1 mile from the takeoff site, said the report, posted on the safety board's website.
The aircraft, a Beechcraft Bonanza, was flying at 216 feet above the ground, just a few feet into the clouds, which were at 200 feet above ground level and accompanied by mist, the report found.
Visibility at the airport at the time of the takeoff was four miles, but it would have been less as the plane approached the clouds.
The pilot, Philip Cowger, 65, of Dardanelle, was flying three members of a Russellville-area family to Knoxville, Tenn., to attend a relative's funeral on Oct. 29, the day of the crash.
Authorities have identified the other three victims as Robert Harris, 48, of Russellville; Wesley Harris, 43, of Pottsville; and Julie Harris Lefevre, 41, of Dover.
The report said the plane "departed on an instrument flight rules ... flight plan," meaning the pilot realized he needed instrument help in flying because of the clouds. Authorities haven't yet said if the pilot tried to radio a control tower in Little Rock or Memphis to seek guidance in the short time, maybe a single minute, before he crashed.
Any number of other factors ranging from malfunctioning equipment to medical problems could have worsened the situation, but the preliminary report gave no clues on what might have gone wrong.
A post-impact fire destroyed the plane.
Pope County Coroner Danny White said Friday that he hopes to receive information on the victims' causes of death from the state medical examiner's office Monday. White has said he doesn't know if the crash's impact or the fire killed the four.
State Desk on 11/07/2015