by April Scheinoha
Reporter

The National Transportation Safety Board has determined the probable cause of a fatal plane crash Sept. 23, 2017, in rural Thief River Falls. The NTSB issued its report Wednesday, Oct. 10.

The NTSB determined that pilot Moy Wing departed in “instrument meteorological conditions and lost control of the plane due to spatial disorientation.” Wing didn’t hold an instrument rating; however, he had flown in and around instrument meteorological conditions in the past.

That morning, the NTSB reported, there was an overcast cloud layer at 400 feet above ground level. The two passengers, Brian Duke and Zach Ostertag, were hesitant about checking out of their hotel that morning since they thought the weather conditions may postpone their flight. Neither had eaten breakfast, and both were concerned about turbulence on the upcoming flight.

Wing, 69; Duke, 27; and Ostertag, 26, died in the crash. All were from Rawlins, Wyo., and were employed at Mountain West Motors Inc. Duke and Ostertag were here for training at Textron. Wing had transported them to Thief River Falls in a Cessna 182 aircraft, and they were returning to Rawlins at the time of the fatal flight.

Four minutes after takeoff Sept. 23, 2017, the plane crashed in a harvested wheat field near the intersection of Center Avenue Northeast and 130th Street Northeast. That spot is about three miles west of the Thief River Falls Regional Airport. The plane had departed from the airport at 7:38 a.m.

“Data obtained from an onboard GPS unit showed the airplane depart toward the destination airport and climb and descend several times,” according to the NTSB report. “About two minutes after takeoff, the airplane descended to 250 feet above ground level, then turned and quickly climbed to 1,400 feet above ground level. The final GPS points showed the airplane in a descending right turn. A witness reported hearing the airplane overhead and stated that the engine was ‘screaming’ before impact.” Debris spanned about 230 yards, which is “consistent with a relatively high forward airspeed at the time of impact.”