SANDWICH, Ill. – Two people flying in a 1946-era airplane died in a crash Saturday in north central Illinois, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
The single-engine aircraft went down in a corn field near the city of Sandwich, said FAA spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory.
The DeKalb County coroner's office identified the dead as Randall Hougham, 53, who was flying the plane, and passenger Lauren Hamilton, 22, both of Sandwich.
They were pronounced dead at the scene. The coroner's office says the crash happened just north of the Sandwich Airport. FAA records show the plane was a Ercoupe 415-C.
In California, a pilot was killed Saturday after a small plane crashed and burned on the Miramar Marine Corps air base near San Diego, authorities said.
The pilot was the only person on board the private Piper Commanche, which was heading from Whiteman Airport in the San Fernando Valley community of Pacoima to Brown Field in San Diego when it went down shortly before 11 a.m., FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said.
The pilot did not issue a distress call before the crash, Gregor said. His identity was not immediately released.
The weather was cloudy around the time of the crash.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board were investigating both crashes.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox