Gardnerville plane crash kills five

GARDNERVILLE " The names of three of the five people killed in an airplane crash near Mottsville Lane in Douglas County were released late Saturday night by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.

Minden resident Paul Dallas, 43, and Gardnerville residents Leia Denner, 40, and Brent Fahey, 30, were identified as passengers on board the aircraft that went down at about 4:10 p.m. on Saturday.

The sheriff's office is withholding the name of the 58-year-old Minden pilot pending notification of next of kin, as well as the name of a 30-year-old New Jersey man who is living and working at Kirkwood Ski Resort.

Investigators with the Federal Aviation Administration arrived on-scene at 7:20 p.m., and began a preliminary investigation. The FAA will continue its investigation and recovery efforts today. Douglas County deputies were stationed at the wreckage overnight until the investigation resumed.

The six-seat twin-engine Beechcraft BE95 took off at about 4 p.m. from Minden-Tahoe Airport.

Witnesses told authorities that the plane appeared to be flying normally before it nose-dived into the ground. They said they didn't hear any unusual noises or see any parts separate from the plane before the crash.

Douglas County Sheriff Ron Pierini reported that witnesses said the plane flew south 200-300 feet above a branding party before crossing Mottsville Lane. About 500 yards south of Mottsville, the plane pulled up, and then took a nose dive into the ground not far from a home on the end of Mottsville Meadows.

Pierini said no one was in the home at the time of the crash. The passengers were pronounced dead at the scene.

FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said the pilot didn't file a flight plan, and it was uncertain where the plane was heading. It crashed 12 miles from the airport.

Mottsville is the main route between Carson Valley and Kingsbury Grade, leading to Lake Tahoe.

According to National Transportation Safety Board records, this is the deadliest aircraft accident in Douglas County since the March 1, 1964, Paradise Airlines crash into Jobs Peak that killed 85 passengers and crew.