IRON COUNTY, Mo. — A man died after the single-engine plane he was flying crashed in a densely wooded part of Iron County south of Viburnum, Missouri, Sunday morning.
Iron County Sheriff Roger Medley said a locator beacon was activated at around 8:30 Sunday morning from a distressed aircraft. The FAA in Colorado determined the plane was down in Iron County, so the Missouri Wing of the Civil Air Patrol was called in to help locate the plane.
The Civil Air Patrol eventually tracked the plane to a heavily wooded area near State Highway KK and Doe Run's Buick Mine and Mill. Even though they knew where the plane was, it took deputies several hours to get to it because of the terrain, Medly said.
When they did arrive, they found the pilot was dead and the plane was heavily damaged. They also found his driver's license and are working to notify his family.
The Iron County Sheriff's Office was leading the investigation before turning it over to the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board. Investigators are still working to figure out why the plane crashed.