(Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune) Weber County emergency personnel and firefighters work the scene of a small, private plane that crashed in a residential neighborhood in Roy, Jan 15, 2020. A 64-year-old pilot was killed.
Roy, Utah • Federal investigators have released a preliminary report after a plane crashed in a Utah neighborhood in January, killing the pilot.
The National Transportation Safety Board released the report Tuesday revealing multiple witnesses saw the airplane's left wing drop before the plane nose dived into a residential neighborhood, The Standard-Examiner reported.
A witness in Roy told investigators that the plane made popping noises before it crashed, investigators said.
David Goode, 64, was the only man on board the aircraft, authorities said.
[Read more: Odgen ski company founder dies after small plane crashes in a Roy neighborhood]
Goode was flying from Bountiful to Ogden and he was about two miles from Ogden-Hinckley Airport when he was cleared to land, an air traffic controller said. The controller then used binoculars to watch the plane and see if the landing gear was down, but instead saw the plane lose altitude and fly out of sight.
The aircraft then hit a corner roof of a townhome complex before crashing into the street, and bursting into flames, the report said. It does not include a definitive cause but suggests engine failure might have been a reason.
Goode was the founder of Ogden-based ski equipment company, Goode Ski Technologies.