BELLEVILLE, Ill. — A small plane that slammed into a house and hangar in a subdivision built for aviation enthusiasts never sent out a distress signal before crashing, authorities said Monday. Two people believed to be on board were presumed killed
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No one on the ground was injured when the single-engine Piper Malibu went down in rain Sunday evening in the Aero Estates Court subdivision while approaching St. Louis Downtown Airport, just east of St. Louis, St. Clair County Sheriff’s Capt. Steve Johnson said.
Airport director Bob McDaniel said the plane, which can seat up to six passengers, was based at the airport and was flying from Vero Beach, Fla.
The plane was registered to a St. Louis-area investment brokerage, McDaniel said.
Johnson said authorities believe two people were on the plane, based on the pilot’s flight plan, which listed a passenger. Relatives of the passenger have told investigators that person was to have been aboard the plane, Johnson said.
McDaniel said he knew the two people believed to be killed in the crash.
