December 7th, 2009
Two killed in plane crash near Niederwald

by SEAN KIMMONS

Two passengers aboard a single-engine turboprop plane were killed after it crashed in a field off of Williamson Road, close to the intersection of Texas 21 and U.S. 183 near Niederwald, officials said.

William Kent Riley, 64, of Rockport, was in the aircraft along with his six-year-old grandson, said Texas Department of Public Safety spokesperson Tom Vinger. The boy’s name has not yet been released.

Vinger described the scene as a debris field about 250 yards long, with both victims ejected from the plane.

“It was pretty much disintegrated,” he said of the aircraft.

The Piper turboprop plane was inbound to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport from Rockport and had made contact with its tower, said Airport spokesman Jim Halbrook.

“The pilot did not declare any emergency or report any problems,” Halbrook said.

The aircraft was about six miles from the airport when it crashed at about 11:41 a.m. on Monday, said Federal Aviation Agency spokesperson Lynn Lunsford.

“He was preparing to take the final approach,” Lunsford said. “He had been talking to aircraft controllers shortly before the crash.”

The weather at the time of the crash was overcast and misty, Lunsford said.