Augusta, GA
I-TEAM: What we know about crashed plane, federal investigation
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The National Transportation Safety Board has already launched its investigation of an airplane crash that killed the pilot Thursday morning in an Augusta neighborhood.
The single-engine propeller-driven plane crashed at Hillcrest Avenue at Belmount Drive around 7:13 a.m. Thursday, moments after taking off from Daniel Field.
It was bound for New Haven, Conn., but only made it a couple of blocks and 625 feet in altitude before it came down in the densely populated neighborhood.
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Many are calling the pilot, Jason McKenzie, a hero for avoiding deaths and injuries on the ground, even though he died in the crash.
After arriving at the crash site around 2:45 p.m. Thursday, NTSB investigator Ralph Hicks took a few minutes to discuss the case.
Hicks said he’d be spending 24 to 36 hours in Augusta.
“We don’t rule anything out,” Hicks said. “We’re here just to just to gather facts, and then put everything together at the end of the investigation.”
Investigators will take pieces of the airplane to a hangar elsewhere in Georgia, where they’ll put it back together and try to determine what happened.
As of right now, investigators don’t know what caused the crash, but they’ll be looking at several factors, including the pilot, the aircraft and the operating environment.
As far as the pilot, Hicks said officials do know McKenzie is an experienced pilot with 800 hours of flight time as of last year.
A visual inspection didn’t reveal any evidence of catastrophic engine failure, Hicks said, and there was no indication of a distress call.
He said it’s not clear whether the pilot tried to return to the airfield before the crash, although observers noted that the direction of the crash might indicate he had.
The “black box” data recorder on the plane could be key if it captured anything important.
Investigators will be looking at flights the plane has made in the past 72 hours that may indicate whether anything has gone wrong.
We looked at the flight records, which show the plane had made several trips in the past few days, including:
- To Greensboro, N.C., on April 24 and back to Daniel Field on Saturday.
- To Southern Pines, N.C., and back on April 23.
- To Sevierville, Tenn., and back on April 20.
- To Thomson and back on April 18.
We know the Beechcraft Bonanza A36 was manufactured in 1999 and owned by WBME, a limited-liability corporation based in Warrenville, according to government records.
The plane had four cabin windows on each side, starboard rear double doors and seats for six. Two of those seats were in the cockpit and four were in the cabin – configured as two rows of two seats each, with the rows facing each other, according to photos of the plane posted online. It had a small cargo area in the rear.
Its certificate was valid until 2030.
Equipped with a three-blade propeller and a 300-horsepower engine, the model was introduced in 1968 and is still being made by the Beechcraft division of Textron – a company that has a plant in Augusta.
WBME was created in October 2023 and the plane was registered to it the next month. The previous owner was in California, so this was a new plane for the owner, though it was made 25 years ago.
The plane’s first flight under WBME ownership was in February of this year.
As far as the investigation, the NTSB’s work could take a while.
Hicks said the agency would release a preliminary statement of facts about the crash in about a week. But a final report on the cause could take a year or two.
The public can help. Hicks said there were indications that video doorbells in the neighborhood had recorded the crash. And some people may have seen it.
Witnesses or those who have surveillance video or other information are asked to contact the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov.
Beyond witness statements and video, the NTSB said Hicks and other investigators will scrutinize:
- Recordings of any air traffic control communications.
- Aircraft maintenance records.
- Weather forecasts and actual weather and lighting conditions around the time of the accident.
- A 72-hour background of the pilot.
- Electronic devices.
Copyright 2024 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
One Columbia County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) deputy was shot and another is dead following a traffic stop shooting on Saturday afternoon in Evans, Georgia.
CCSO Maj. Steve Morris told Fox News Digital two deputies were shot and one has died, but they have not yet released the names of the deputies involved.
Morris said the suspect has been identified as James Blake Montgomery.
No arrests had been made as of 9:30 p.m., but Morris told Fox News Digital Montgomery is “no longer a threat.”
Georgia State Patrol (GSP) told Fox News Digital troopers were assisting with blocking off roads and some troopers were at the scene, as of 9:30 p.m.
Montgomery was charged in December 2022 with felony aggravated assault, according to Columbia County court records. Records indicate he was later exonerated.
Evans, Georgia is about 10 miles northwest of Augusta — home to the Augusta National Golf Club and the annual Masters Tournament.
Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson posted to Facebook Saturday night to share his condolences.
“Heartbroken and praying for the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office and our neighbors in Columbia County,” Johnson wrote. “Our prayers are with the families of the fallen, the entire Sheriff’s Office, and all who are grieving this unimaginable loss. We honor their sacrifice and pray for the difficult days ahead.”
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr shared on X he is still waiting for updates on the second deputy injured in the line of duty.
“Anyone willing to put on the uniform every day in a job that’s not safe, with somebody waiting for them to come home at the end of the shift, deserves our unwavering support & continued appreciation,” Carr wrote in the post. “We join in praying for the family of this fallen Deputy, his fellow officer, & all who served with him.”
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, also reportedly at the scene, did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
CCSO is currently the lead investigative agency, according to the Georgia State Patrol.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – New car charging stations are in Augusta, located at the Target on Robert C Daniel Parkway.
It comes as electric cars are growing in popularity, but finding a charger can be difficult depending on where you live.
An estimated six in ten urban people live within a mile of a public charging station–that’s according to the Pew Research Center.
However, that number drops to around 41% of suburbanites and just 17% of rural Americans.
Some other charging stations shown on the ChargeFinder website are at the Augusta Mall, Kroger on Washington Road, Augusta University and certain car dealerships in the area.
Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A man has been convicted and sentenced in connection with a 2022 shooting that killed an innocent bystander on Washington Road
Julius Riddick Jr. was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the shooting that killed Reginald Johnson around noon Oct. 17, 2022, at a busy Dunkin’ Donuts/Baskin Robbins location at 3024 Washington Road.
District Attorney Jared Williams said Riddick was angry over a failed bank scam, so he jumped out of his vehicle and started firing at an associate.
The associate was unharmed, but the gunfire killed Johnson.
A jury on Friday found him guilty on all counts of felony murder, and he was sentenced by Judge John Flythe.
Said DA Williams after the verdict, “Jarryd Brown and Keagan Waystack are two of the most talented attorneys in the state, and they prove it every time they step in a courtroom to do justice for victims. I’m grateful they choose to serve our community.”
Also originally charged in the case was John Lee Scarboro.
According to an arrest warrant for Scarboro, he and another suspect were shooting at each other while Johnson was in Scarboro’s car.
Earlier this week court records show under his name, “order to release material witness.”
He’s still listed as a Richmond County jail inmate being held for superior and state court.
The shooting happened at the beginning of an outbreak of deadly crime across the CSRA that’s now claimed around 200 lives in three years.
It’s affected communities large and small on both sides of the Savannah River, but Augusta has been hit especially hard.
Copyright 2022 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
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