Airplane falls from sky
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RONAN – Robert Christensen was flying through sunny skies southwest of Ronan in his ultra-light airplane on Friday when he started losing altitude.
“(A) witness stated that Christensen was testing his plane for the first time,” Lake County Sheriff Don Bell said.
After quickly losing altitude, the left wing of the plane hit a side hill, according to Sheriff bell. The plane started spinning in the air and then crashed down into a field. The engine hit the dirt first. Christensen remained strapped in the plane while it flipped onto its top.
Lake County Dispatch was called about 12:30 p.m. The Ronan Fire Department responded to the scene along with Ronan ambulance, Lake County Sheriff’s Deputies, Lake County Department of Emergency Services and a Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Ranger.
The Ronan Fire Department used the Jaws of Life to cut Christensen out of the plan, and the medical crew took him to the hospital. Sheriff Bell said the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were called.
