After a massive search involving multiple city, state and federal agencies, the man’s body was found behind a home near Sunset Lake and Hilltop Needmore roads, said Darshan Patel, director of operations for Wake County Emergency Management. in a news update after the discovery. Friday night, the man was identified as Charles Hew Crooks of Raleigh, according to a post on the Fuquay-Varina Police Department’s Facebook page. Earlier Friday, Patel did not identify Crooks but said he was 27 years old. Crooks was the plane’s co-pilot, the Fuquay-Varina Police Department said. Patel and Fuquay-Varina police said Crooks was found after a resident of the Sonoma Springs subdivision flagged down search crews who were already near the neighborhood. Emergency personnel clear a search area Friday, July 29, 2022 in Fuquay-Varina, NC, after a twin-engine turboprop plane made an emergency landing at RDU International Airport and skidded off the runway. One person ejected from the plane before the emergency landing and was found dead in a Fuquay-Varina residential yard. Travis Long [email protected] That was the tragic end to a confusing emergency at RDU Friday. Around 3 p.m., a twin-engine turbo prop aircraft reported problems with its landing gear as it approached the airport, according to the airport. The plane landed on Runway 5R-23L and went off the grass, according to the airport. The pilot, the only occupant of the plane when it touched down, was taken to Duke University Hospital with minor injuries, an airport spokesman said. Authorities received a report of the missing man around 2:30 or 2:45 p.m., Patel said. As of 5 p.m., EMS, police and fire were searching a large area of Wake County for a second person who may have “exited the plane while it was in the air,” said Carolyn Roman with the city of Curry. Patel said search crews were “hoping for a better outcome”. He did not know if the man who had died jumped or fell, he said. The man did not have a parachute, Patel said. He did not know how high the plane was flying when the man exited the plane. A North Carolina State Highway Patrol helicopter flies over a search area Friday, July 29, 2022 in Fuquay-Varina, NC after a twin-engine turboprop aircraft made an emergency landing at RDU International Airport and skidded off the runway. One person ejected from the plane before the emergency landing and was found dead in a Fuquay-Varina residential yard. Travis Long [email protected] Patel and the Fuquay-Varina Police Department referred questions about the investigation to RDU, the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board. Investigators worked with RDU Airport and the FAA to map the plane’s flight plan and compare it to the pilot’s radio traffic, Patel said. Investigators deployed a drone as well as an NC State Highway Patrol helicopter to comb a large area from southern Wake County to the Harnett County line, Patel said. Investigators were narrowing down their search area when the man’s body was found.
A few details about the plane’s course
According to FlightAware.com, the plane departed from Raeford in Hoke County at 1:10 p.m. and landed at approximately 2:49 p.m. Because the flight was not a commercial flight, airport officials did not know if RDU was the intended destination. The plane is registered to Spore LTD LLC of Colorado Springs, according to FlightAware.
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In a breaking news situation, facts can be unclear and details can change as the story unfolds. Our journalists work to get information as quickly and accurately as possible. This story may be updated as more information becomes available. Refresh this page for the most up-to-date report. This story was originally published on July 29, 2022 at 3:48 pm. Related stories from the Raleigh News & Observer
