The names of the victims in Sunday's fatal plane crash in southern Illinois have been identified. According to several news outlets, the pilot and a passenger have been named as Dr. Erich Snyder, 36, of Carterville, Ill., and his father, Tommy Snyder, 59, of Zeigler, Ill.
Erich Snyder was a chiropractor at Carterville Chiropractic & Advanced Pain Management.
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The small aircraft left Marion-Crittenden County Airport after refueling and was bound for Marion, Ill., and was found Monday evening in a remote area of Pope County. There were no survivors.
The National Transportation Safety Board has yet to determine a cause of the crash, but weather is believed to have been a contributing factor. There were storms in the area that night.
The fatalities are the first related to local airport operations. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the airport became operational in February 1982. During the 12-month period ending in April 2013, there were more than 5,200 operations (landings and departures count as separate operations) at the airport. Airport Manager Jim Johnson said that number is now higher. One-fifth of the annual operations reported in April 2013 were military.
The Crittenden Press will continue to report on this story as new information becomes available.
