A Bemidji pilot was killed when his plane crashed early in December in Northern Illinois.

Larry Diffley, 74, president of a small charter airline in Minnesota, was killed when his two-engine plane crashed into a Manhattan Township soybean field owned by the family of Ray Nugent. The crash, which occurred just before 3 p.m. on December 4th, left a path of debris that was a few hundred yards long.

It was confirmed that Diffley was the only one in the Hawker Beechcraft BE-58. It was registered with Bemidji Aviation Services, which is based in Minnesota and is a cargo and charter airline that Diffley co-owned for almost four decades before the company became owned by its employees in 2006. Diffley was, however, the company president.

As for where Diffley was heading, the Will County Illinois authorities said that Diffley was working for an oil pipeline company and was going to the Joliet airport to pick up another individual. Diffley almost made it to Joliet when the plane went down.

It was realized that something was wrong when Diffley had not showed up on time and no one had heard from him. It was not long before the call came in that informed those waiting on Diffley that his plane had crashed in the nearby field.

It is suspected that the cause of the crash may have been a fuel issue because there was no gas odor at the scene of the crash, nor was there a fire. The reason for the crash is currently under investigation. If someone that you love has been fatally injured in an incident that may have been caused by the malfunction of a defective product, you may be eligible to file a damages lawsuit. Contact a personal injury lawyer at TSR Injury Law today for a complimentary consultation.

Ph: (612) TSR-TIME.