KENT, Wash. — The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released its preliminary report on the small seaplane that crashed into Lake Meridian last month, killing the pilot.
According to their findings, the landing gear was down when it should have been retracted for a water landing.
The report says that as the floats were about to touch down on the surface of the water, the plane abruptly nosed over, and came to rest inverted, partially submerged within the lake.
The plane departed Norman Grier Field in Kent at about 10:05 a.m. and flew northwest toward Lake Meridian, according to the report.
The last recorded Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) data point was over the northwestern area of the lake about 5 minutes after the time of takeoff.
KIRO 7′s Brandon Thompson went to the scene the day the crash happened and spoke with the public information officer for Puget Sound Fire, Pat Pawlak.
Pawlak says that the boaters and community members kept the plane from drifting and helped first responders quickly retrieve the pilot and revive him.
The pilot, 74-year-old Alan Williams, was rushed to Harborview Medical Center but he eventually died of his injuries.
His family sent KIRO 7 a statement, saying, “He was a selfless person who was always there to help those around him. Like the love he showed others, our heartbreak cannot be put into words.”