The FAA has released their final report on the plane crash in 2015 that claimed the lives of four Warsaw men.
The South Bend Tribune reports the small plane likely went down as a result of the pilot losing control of the aircraft for reasons that could not be determined.
The plane was flying from Warsaw, Indiana, to the Oconee airport, according to Greenville Online. The plane was registered to Smith Family Aviation LLC in Warsaw, Indiana.
Oconee County Emergency Services Deputy Chief Adam Williams said the crash happened Oct. 2, 2015, on the shore of Lake Hartwell in a remote area.
Williams said first responders found debris on the ground and in the water before reaching the site. He said no one survived.
Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Berger said in an email that the wreckage of the Piper PA-32 was found on the Georgia-South Carolina border. She said the plane was headed to the airport in Clemson, South Carolina, when air traffic controllers lost contact with the flight.
The Federal Aviation Administration received a mayday transmission at 3:15 p.m., according to Greenville Online.
Conditions around the Oconee airport were described as “dismal” by an official at the Oconee County Regional Airport, Greenville Online reported.
The crash claimed the lives of Warsaw Councilman Charlie Smith, his son Scott, race car driver Tony Elliot, and former Tippecanoe Valley educator Scott Bibler. The four were flying to a Notre Dame football game.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
