NTSB begins probe of plane crash that kills family of 4
SAN ANTONIO — The National Transportation Safety Board has begun investigating the cause of a plane crash in Comal County that killed a family of four Saturday.
Pilot Scott Galloway, his wife, Heather, and their two children Clayton and Cheyenne died in the crash at Strutty's Feed and Pet Supply Store on Highway 281 near Spring Branch, north of San Antonio.
The plane had taken off around 12:30 p.m. from Kestrel Air Park, according to a spokesperson from the Federal Aviation Administration.
NTSB spokesperson Ed Malinowski said Sunday morning's storm delayed the investigation but once the rain stopped, they were able to go through and start collecting evidence.
Malinowski said Galloway's aircraft, a Piper PA-24 Comanche, did not have a flight data recorder on it.
He said investigators are looking into the wreckage and background of the four-seat, low-wing aircraft as well as Galloway's background.
Representatives of Piper Aircraft, the plane's manufacturer, and the FAA were also at the crash site Sunday.
"We're looking to gather everything from witness marks, how the airplane impacted the ground at an angle, where the burning did occur during the ground impact fire," Malinowski said.
Tina Platt, an area resident who came by the site, said, "Even if you didn't know the family themselves, we know people who knew them, worked with them, who loved them. It impacts us all. There's a heavy dark sadness all over the area today,"
On the FAA website, it indicates Galloway's plane is owned by Charles Torkelson.
Torkelson did not want to talk on camera but said he no longer owns the plane. He said most likely, Galloway did not sbumit the registration certificate to FAA. Torkelson said he sold the plane more than a year ago and did not have any issues with it when he owned the aircraft.
He said when he owned it, a mechanic doing an annual inspection accidentally ran it into a hangar. He said the insurance settlement indicated that it was a total loss and the insurance company sold it to a salvage company called Wentworth Aircraft in Minnesota. Torkelson said it ended up being sold to someone in Pleasanton, Texas. Then, that person sold it to Galloway.
Torkelson said he saw Galloway fixing up the aircraft at an airport in Castroville. He said after talking with Galloway, he could tell he was an experienced mechanic. Though, he didn't know how long Galloway had been flying.
Malinowski said the NTSB will post a preliminary report on the cause of the crash on its website in five or six days.