The Ravalli County Sheriff's Office reports that a man died after a small plane crashed on Tuesday, June 27, 2023.
The pilot — who was the only person on the plane — died at the scene "due to the impact of the crash," according to a news release.
Ravalli County Sheriff Steve Holton says the victim is a man from the Hamilton area.
The name of the man has not yet been released.
Initial information indicates the crash happened during or shortly after the plane took off from the airport.
A member of the Victor Fire Department told MTN News the plane was a vintage WWII-era P-40 "Warhawk" aircraft, one of fewer than 20 operational Warhawks in the nation.
From the National Museum of the US Air Force website:
The P-40 was the United States' best fighter available in large numbers when World War II began. P-40s engaged Japanese aircraft at Pearl Harbor and in the Philippines in December 1941. They also served with the famed Flying Tigers in China in 1942, and in North Africa in 1943 with the 99th Fighter Squadron, the first African American U.S. fighter unit.
The cause of the crash has not yet been determined.
Sheriff Holton says the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board have been notified of the crash and will be investigating.
We will update you if we get more information.
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