By Brian Justice
A 73-year-old Laurens, South Carolina, pilot received non-life-threatening injuries early Wednesday afternoon when the plane he was flying in crashed just after taking off from Franklin County Airport/Sewanee.
Franklin County Sheriff’s Office reports said pilot David Muse had just refueled a fixed-wing experimental single-engine airplane and had taken off when the wind changed.
He told deputies he had lost speed which caused the plane to go down, reports said, adding that the plane crashed into trees and onto the ground.
Reports said that, although he was injured, Muse was able to get out of the plane. He was taken to Southern Tennessee Regional Health System – Sewanee for precautionary measures, reports said.
The plane was taken to a hangar at the airport for further investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration, reports said.
In addition to the Sheriff’s Office, the Sewanee Police, Fire and Rescue departments responded to the scene as did emergency medical service personnel from Franklin and Grundy counties.
