NTSB faults weight in W.Va. plane crash that killed 6 a year ago

Weight led to W.Va. plane crash that killed 6

KENOVA, W.Va. — The National Transportation Safety Board says a small, private plane was overloaded when it crashed and killed all six passengers in West Virginia a year ago.

The agency also says in a report earlier this month that the Piper PA-34 was improperly balanced. The report notes that pilot Wieslaw Dobrzanski of Niles, Ill., also didn’t get a weather briefing, wasn’t certified for instrument flight and didn’t file a flight plan.

Dobrzanski and his passengers, including four members of the American Polish Aero-Club in Chicago, died when the plane struck power lines and crashed.

The NTSB says the plane weighed about more than 300 pounds above the manufacturer’s maximum at takeoff and that the weight was distributed improperly.