Pilot of small plane traveling from Ky. dies after crashing into lake in Arkansas

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (WTVQ) — The pilot of a small plane traveling from Kentucky died after crashing into a lake in Arkansas Monday.

According to ABC affiliate KATV, the pilot, identified as Daniel Jones, died after the Cessna 177 Cardinal he was flying crashed into a cove near 161 Port-Au-Prince Street in Hot Springs.

A 23-year-old passenger was rescued from the lake and airlifted to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences for treatment.

Divers with the Hot Springs Fire Department had also pulled Daniel, 49, out of the water, but he was unresponsive.

“Authorities with the Hot Springs Airport responded to the scene and stated a call was made to the flight tower from the airplane that had been traveling from Kentucky requesting permission to land due to aircraft distress,” the Garland County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. “Once the plane did not land at the airport 911 authorities were contact and were already in route to the location off Port Au Prince.”

The crash and reason for the distress call are being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration, according to KATV.