PLYMOUTH, Conn. — A small plane that crashed into a campground in Plymouth on June 3 lost engine power and the propeller stopped turning halfway during flight, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board Wednesday.
According to the NTSB, the student pilot of a Cessna 172K, a small propeller training plane with a single engine, reported that the fuel tanks were full before attempting a solo cross-country flight from Wappingers Falls, N.Y.
The engine rpm began going down until losing all power halfway through the flight at 5,500 ft. mean sea level, the report said.
It was also noted that the propeller was not windmilling, even after the pilot made an attempt to restart the engine, according to the report.
Making an attempt to to glide to a nearby airport, the plane went into wooded terrain about one mile away and crashed into Gentile's Campground, the report said, which was just feet away from electrical lines and camping families.
The pilot was left with minor injuries, according to the NTSB. No one else was inside the plane at the time.
The Federal Aviation Administration found the plane belly up in the campground, with the wings and main body of the aircraft "substantially damaged," according to the report. Fuel had also been leaking from the wing fuel tanks damaged during the crash, with three-fourths of the total capacity left in the plane.
The plane wreckage was taken for examination, according to the report.
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