Small plane crash in southeastern Minnesota kills pilot

WINDOM, Minn. – Authorities say a small plane with no passengers on board crashed Sunday morning, killing the pilot after taking off from a southern Minnesota airport.

The Cottonwood County Sheriff’s Department said in a release that law enforcement began searching after a report there was no radio contact with a plane scheduled to depart from the airport in Windom, located about 150 miles (241.40 kilometres) southwest of the Twin Cities.

The site of the crash was located at 7:43 a.m. There were no passengers on board. The pilot was dead at the scene, the release said.

The sheriff’s department said it was assisted by the Windom Police Department, Windom Fire Department, Minnesota State Patrol, Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.

The statement said the investigation is ongoing. No further details were immediately available.