Fatal airplane crash at Claremore airport

Thursday, April 18th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

A fatal plane crash in Claremore Thursday morning. The pilot, David McKenzie, was flying his experimental plane when he crashed just north of the runway at the Claremore municipal airport.

The bi-plane had a fabric fuselage and was made at home, not by a manufacturer, but it had 260 horsepower, so was quite strong. Authorities tell us McKenzie called in to say he was going to land, but he never showed up on the runway. That's when one of the linemen hopped in a golf cart to go look for him, and found the crash site.

Claremore Airport chairman, Tim Fleetwood, "He was a family man, he had two kids, he went to church and flying was his thing." McKenzie and his wife managed the airport and she was there when he crashed.

McKenzie was a retired pilot with Continental Airlines and had flown A-7's for the Oklahoma National Guard. The NTSB will investigate.