An man died in a single engine plane crash on April 13 near Hardy. Law enforcement and medical officials from Sharp and Fulton County with were on the scene in Fulton County for hours after the crash. But, ultimately, due to the fact the crash was aircraft related, the investigation into the cause of the crash will be determined by the Federal Aviation Administration(-FAA) and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Officials from those agencies arrived on Friday to look into the cause of the crash and were on scene with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Department. The body was recovered from the aircraft and has been sent to the Arkansas Medical Examiner’s office, where it awaits identification. According to the Federal Aviation Association, the N Number on the tail of the 2015 Model Junior Edwin Strafford fixed wing single engine plane was registered to Steven Douglas Gill, of Javelo, LLC. of Hars Creek Road in Ash Flat. Land records indicate Gill was also the owner of the quarry in which the crash occurred, Witness Beverly Martin, who was traveling north bound on Highway 63 from Thayer, told our news affiliate KAIT8’s on scene reporter Hayden Savage, the plane was seen flying very low with a male on board right before the crash. Martin said she thought the plane might crash into the highway before crashing into the wall of quarry and flipping backward. Law enforcement also confirmed the plane went down around 2 p.m. crashing into the wall of the quarry. The quarry is located north of Hardy off Highway 63 near the Gut Creek bridge. Officials with the FAA and NTSB were on scene on April 14 and will release their findings once the investigation is complete. This news agency will provide updates as they become available. Between newspapers, news will be posted on our social media page,.
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