Engine issues caused a small plane to crash into a McKinney construction site Thursday and catch fire, according to a preliminary report from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The plane crash killed two people and injured a third. On Friday, the Texas Department of Public Safety identified the victims as pilot Michael Lewis, 67, of Forney, and passenger Gustavo Moreno, 53, of Royse City. A third person, who was not identified, was taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas.
Around 10:25 a.m., the plane — a twin-engine Cessna 414 — crashed near Farm to Market Road 546 and County Road 317 shortly after departing McKinney National Airport.
According to FAA records, the plane was registered to Hunger Relief Ministries in Forney. The nonprofit did not immediately respond to a phone call Friday from The Dallas Morning News.
Investigations by the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are ongoing.
Small plane crashes like this are happening almost monthly in North Texas.
In 2023, the NTSB investigated 103 reported cases of aviation accidents in Texas, primarily involving general aviation. Texas typically ranks among the top three states — with California and Florida — for accidents, a former director of the safety board’s investigations division told The News earlier this year.
Earlier this month, a 27-year-old pilot died and her co-pilot was hospitalized after their plane crashed during an instructional flight in Cooke County — the second fatal crash associated with a Denton-based flight school since 2019.
In May, a 19-year-old student pilot died after crashing into a Johnson County field. A preliminary report examining that crash found no evidence of a pre-impact malfunction or a mechanical failure.