Monday, February 28, 2000
Couple survive plane crash
BY WILLIAM A. WEATHERS
The Cincinnati Enquirer
A Montgomery couple escaped serious injury Sunday morning when their single-engine plane crashed in a wooded area near Bloomington, Ind.
Indiana State Police said the 1966 Beechcraft Bonanza V-35 aircraft crashed at 11:45 a.m. in Monroe County, about 51/2 miles northeast of Bloomington. Douglas C. Sauer, 56, and his wife, Susan, 55, both of 8700 block of Monte Drive, received minor injuries.
“You just don't think they're going to be OK,” Lisa Geyer, who lives nearby and was the first person to reach the crash site. She was amazed that the couple survived the crash without serious injury.
“They were fine. I was so relieved that they were OK.”
State police said the aircraft was destroyed.
Mrs. Sauer, who had suffered a leg injury, was lying on the ground near the plane, Mrs. Geyer said.
“She was alert and talking,” she said.
Mr. Sauer was inside the wreckage.
“He was squatting in the plane (that had flipped over). I think he was on the radio,” Mrs. Geyer said.
Surveying the scene, Mrs. Geyer said the aircraft had “clipped a lot of trees on the way down.”
State police said the aircraft lost power and Mr. Sauer, who was piloting the plane, was trying to land in a clearing on top of a hill. The aircraft, which was flying east, failed to make the clearing and crashed in a wooded area.
“I think they were very lucky, very lucky,” said State Trooper Curt Feather.
Mr. Sauer said engine problems prompted the crash landing, Mrs. Geyer said.
“He said the engine just stopped.”
Her husband, Chris Geyer, saw the plane go down about a quarter-mile from their home. He rushed to the crash site, which was difficult to locate in the wooded area because there was no smoke or flames.
His wife called 911, then joined the search.
Mrs. Sauer suffered a severe cut on the knee and fractured ankle. Mr. Sauer had cuts on his face and head.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash.
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Couple survive plane crash
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