GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — No one was injured during a small plane crash in Hillsdale County late Wednesday morning, police said.
Around 11:50 a.m., Michigan State Police troopers were called to the scene of the crash in a field near the intersection of Mosherville and Rainey Road in Litchfield Township.
Police said a flight student had been working with an instructor to practice maneuvering a “stall,” a condition where the airplane’s wing is at an angle that disrupts smooth airflow, causing a loss of lift, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Learning how to operate an airplane in conditions like a stall is part of flight training, the FAA says.
During the instruction, “the plane would not start,” MSP said. After trying unsuccessfully to restart it several times, the instructor and student activated a parachute that was attached to the plane and fell to the ground in a controlled manner, according to police.
No one was injured.
The FAA is investigating. Police said the plane will likely be at the scene for a few days as Western Michigan University works to remove it. MSP did not confirm whether the plane and instructor were based out of WMU.
