The pilot and a passenger in a small plane died when it crashed shortly after taking off from the Duluth International Airport early Wednesday, investigators said.

The crash occurred in a wooded area near an unincorporated township north of Duluth, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office said in a news release.

Deputies found the plane after a spotter plane observed the possible wreckage on the ground. The two people on board were dead, the sheriff's office said.

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A pilot and passenger were killed in a crash of a small plane near Duluth on Wednesday morning.  (Fox News)

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The plane was a 1946 Aeronca Champ, which can seat two occupants. Investigators believe the aircraft recently completed an annual inspection and was on a return to service flight, the sheriff's office said.

The names of two people who died have not been released.

The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the incident.