ADDISON, Texas – A stolen plane crashed along the Texas-Oklahoma border, resulting in the death of the pilot, the Texas Department of Public Safety reported on Wednesday.
The incident involved the theft of a single-engine Cessna 172 from the ATP Flight School at Addison Airport. The plane was then flown over 80 miles northeast toward Paris before crashing at about 8:15 p.m. near the Fannin and Lamar county lines.
The pilot was identified as 23-year-old Logan Timothy James of Stokesdale, North Carolina. He was the only person on board, and it is not immediately clear if he made any distress calls before the crash.
A recording of the pilot’s communication with Air Traffic Control was obtained, where he stated his intention to head to east Texas and disable the communication circuit breakers. This revelation raises further questions about the circumstances leading to the crash.
The investigation into the crash will involve multiple agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration. Retired Navy Captain and aviation expert Armen Kurdian emphasized the importance of understanding why the pilot was flying the stolen plane, indicating that interviews with the pilot’s associates and instructors will be crucial.
The motive behind the theft and crash of the plane remains unclear, and the authorities are working diligently to piece together the events leading up to the tragic incident.