Report Sheds Light On Small Plane Crash

New details are coming to light about the just outside on Nov. 26.

According to a preliminary report released by the National Transportation Safety Board, bad weather took part in causing the crash.

Curt Bradshaw from the McHenry County Coroner’s office confirmed the victims as Raymond Harris, 46; Shey Harris, 20; Ramie Harris, 21; and 22-year-old Christopher Backus. He said the four died upon impact of the crash.

Raymond Harris had received his private pilot’s license in April 2010, the NTSB report said. Harris had logged about 205 hours of flight time, with about 114 hours of flight time in the airplane he had had been flying at the time of the crash. Harris’ logbook included a high performance airplane endorsement, the report said.

Harris was flying under visual flight rules and did not have an instrument rating, which would have allowed him to land at Dupage Airport, the report stated. He was two hours into the flight when it crashed.

Harris was flying under visual fight rules and headed towards DuPage Airport in West Chicago at the time of the crash when he flew over the airport and lost site of it.

Harris spoke with air traffic controllers at the airport just before 10 a.m. and said he was not sure he wanted to land at DPA because he did not want to “get in there and stuck all day” because of the weather, the report said. Friends and family said Harris was flying Ramie back to Wheaton College, where she attended school.

After missing DuPage Airport, Harris informed controllers he would land at Chicago Executive Airport, located about 20 miles away. He also told controllers the flight was “in and out of the clouds right now.”

About 10:12 a.m. controllers informed Harris of weather conditions at airports in the surrounding area. Harris said he would proceed to Chicago Executive Airport, the closest airport reporting visual flight rules. Later, Harris informed controllers he decided he would not land at Chicago Executive Airport because he did not want to “mess with the weather” and did not want to “get stuck in here,” the report said. Controllers did not hear from Harris after that.

Around 10:25 the plane crashed into a tree just outside Crystal Lake and four miles north-northwest of the Lake in the Hills Airport.

According to the report, multiple tree limbs up to four inches were found distributed over a 45-foot by 45-foot area north of the tree. Debris from the wreckage was spread as far as 400 feet apart. The main wreckage came to rest just short of 100 feet away from the tree. The engine and propeller had separated from the airframe and were found more than 130 feet north of the main wreckage.

A parachute was found deployed at the scene of the accident, but the report did not mention why or when it had been deployed.

A witness reported hearing the plane just before the accident.

“He noted that is sounded like the airplane was doing aerobatics, with the airplane climbing and descending,” the NTSB report stated. “Less than one minute later, he observed the airplane south of his location in an approximate 70-degree nose down attitude.”

The NTSB said it could take a few months for a final report to be complete.

To view the full preliminary report, click here.