MO Father & Son Killed In Plane Crash After Fiancee Attempts To Guide Plane To Runway With Flashlight

FESTUS, MO. (THECOUNT) — Michael G. Metzger, 56, of Hillsboro, Missouri and Jacob A. Metzger, 20, of Iowa were identified through dental records, after being involved in a small plane crash in Festus, MO, Friday.

Metzger, 56, and Metzger, 20, were named as the man and his adult son killed when their small plane crashed near the runway of an unlit Missouri airport.

Sadly, the pilot’s fiancee desperately attempted to guide in the plane to the runway with a flashlight, reported Fox2Now, after the pilot reported that he was unable to engage the airport’s runway lights, due to a malfunctioning switch in the cockpit. The airport runway lights are reportedly turned off at night, and must be engaged via the approaching aircraft.

The fiancee responded to the pilot’s texts and stood along the runway with a flashlight. The plane briefly touched down, but for unknown reasons, took off again. It went down a short time later.

The wreckage was discovered Friday morning in woods near the airport runway in Festus, south of St. Louis.

The victims of the crash have now been identified by Jefferson County Police. They say Michael G. Metzger, 56, of Hillboro [sic] Missouri and Jacob A. Metzger, 20, of Iowa were identified through dental records. source

Jefferson County Sheriff Dave Marshak says the pilot was returning from New York Thursday and reported electrical problems in the plane that prevented him from remotely activating the runway lights, which are turned off after working hours.

The sheriff initially said the plane was newly purchased, but later said it had been in the family for some time.