Plane Crashes In Grand Lake

Sunday, December 17th 2006, 2:19 pm

By: News On 6

JAY, Okla. (AP) _ A pilot who survived the crash of a small aircraft that killed three passengers was arrested Sunday and charged with manslaughter, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said.

The pilot, Brent Caldwell, 30, of Pryor, was taken into custody after investigators determined he did not have a valid pilot's license and was under the influence of alcohol at the time of Saturday evening's crash, said Trooper Kera Philippi, and OHP spokeswoman.

The level of alcohol in his system was not immediately available.

Caldwell was the pilot of a plane that crashed into Grand Lake shortly after 6 p.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Caldwell was taken to St. John Medical Center in Tulsa afterward, where he had been listed in good condition with head and internal injuries.

Killed were Mariano Carlos, 15, of Pryor, Eduardo Ortiz Robles, 20, of Mexico, and Campos Gonzalez, 33, of Mexico, the patrol said. They were pinned under water for an unknown length of time and were pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.

Caldwell was booked into the Delaware County Jail early Sunday, Philippi said. Delaware County authorities said no bond was set for Caldwell and that he is scheduled to appear before a judge Monday morning.

Witnesses told the OHP they saw the plane flying very low but heard no engine noise before it struck the water on the north bank of a creek on the lake.

The pilot said the plane lost power before it hit the water, the patrol said.

The plane, a fixed-wing, single-engine Bellanca registered to Caldwell, was found in 10 to 12 feet of water, Philippi said. She said the pilot told officials that his flight was a local one and that he did not file a flight plan before taking off.

The pilot stated he was flying to Tulsa, but his aircraft was traveling eastbound away from Tulsa when it went down, Philippi said.

Jay is located about 80 miles northeast of Tulsa.