Couple, 2 dogs killed after plane crashes in Michigan, police say

LUDINGTON, Mich. — An Indiana couple and their two dogs were killed on Sunday when their single-engine crashed after takeoff at a Michigan airport, authorities said.

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The fixed-wing plane crashed after taking off from the Mason County Airport near Ludington, MLive.com reported. The Socata TBM-700 went down at approximately 10 a.m. EST and burst into flames, according to WOOD-TV.

The Pere Marquette Township Fire Department wrote in a Facebook post that the plane crashed in a field and was not easily accessible.

A 43-year-old female and 60-year-old male, along with their two dogs, died in the crash, MLive.com reported. They were pronounced dead at the scene.

While the victims’ names have not been officially released, The Herald Republican newspaper of Angola, Indiana, identified them as Alison Wheaton and Randy Strebig of Lake James, Indiana. The newspaper cited a “local police official” and business associates of the couple.

State troopers said the couple was visiting family members in Ludington, WZZM-TV reported.

According to the Mason County Press, it was snowing in the area, with the temperature at 33 degrees and winds at 7 mph and gusting up to 16 mph from the west-southwest. Visibility was less than one mile, the newspaper reported.

Mason County Sheriff Kim Cole said the plane was heading east after it took off and then banked hard to the north, MLive.com reported.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the plane’s destination was the Albuquerque International Sunport Airport in New Mexico, according to WOOD.

The National Transportation Safety Board is handling the investigation, the FAA said.