Investigation Closed: FAA Rules On Elgin Plane Incident

The Federal Aviation Administration has closed the investigation of an incident involving an airplane west of Elgin this summer.
 
FAA spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory said the investigation was closed “as there was no intention of flight.”
 
“The National Transportation Safety Board looked at the event and the pilot statements, and determined that the pilot did not intend to fly,” the spokeswoman said. “He had stated he was only warming the engines. That means the event was not an accident or incident that the NTSB or FAA would investigate, as we handle aircraft that are in the process of flight. The NTSB closed it out, and the FAA followed suit.”
 
The investigation stems from a June 22 incident in which the Antelope County Sheriff’s Department received a 911 call reporting a downed plane 7 miles west of Elgin near the Midwest Flying Service Building around 6:30 p.m. Officers from the Antelope County Sheriff’s Department, Nebraska State Patrol and Neligh Police Department responded to the scene.
 
A search was conducted at and around the scene for the pilot and no one was located. According to the Antelope County Sheriff's Office, Tim Grothe of rural Elgin was believed to be the pilot of the downed plane. Grothe's family members were contacted, and at 8:41 p.m., officers at the scene were advised that the pilot was uninjured.

FAA investigators arrived at the scene the following day and conducted a lengthy investigation.​