Federal transportation and aviation officials began sifting through the wreckage Wednesday of a small plane that crashed and burst into flames Tuesday on the hillside above southeast Provo, killing an Orem man.
Killed was:Adam Oliphant, 21, Orem.
Investigators believe Oliphant was the pilot and was likely killed instantly. No other passengers were in the aircraft.
The smoldering wreckage and darkness prevented rescue workers from removing Oliphant's body Tuesday night. The body was brought down from the mountain Wednesday morning and transported to the state medical examiner's office for positive identification and to determine the exact cause of death.
The single-engine plane crashed at 3:10 p.m. only a few hundred feet up the mountain just south of Slate Canyon. The accident was witnessed by several residents and construction workers whose attention was drawn to the plane when it flew only a few hundred feet above a new subdivision.
"I heard it right above me, looked up and watched it run straight into the hill," construction worker Doug Schnakenburg said.
Most witnesses said the plane was traveling directly east and made no effort to avoid the mountain. The plane hit the hill nose first about 100 feet above some power lines, bounced down the hill about 10 feet and then burst into flames.
"It didn't turn and it didn't raise up," witness Clay Lowe said. "There was no deviation from its path."
Witnesses gave conflicting statements about whether the plane might have had engine problems. Some said the plane was sputtering, but most said the engine was running right until impact.
"I saw flames before I heard the engine stop," Schnakenburg said.
Several witnesses climbed the hillside to assist any victims but were unable to locate anyone in the burning wreckage. When the wreckage was extinguished, however, rescue workers located Oliphant sitting in the pilot seat.
The accident ignited a small brush fire, but the blaze was extinguished in about 30 minutes by Utah County and Provo firefighters. Less than 10 acres was burned.
Investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board arrived on the scene Wednesday to begin inspecting debris that is scattered several hundred feet around the crash site.
Investigators say it will be several weeks before the cause of the accident is determined.