2 dead after plane crash in St. Louis County

2 people killed in Minnesota plane crash

Two people were killed after a plane crashed about 30 minutes north of Duluth in St. Louis County.

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Minn. (FOX 9) - Two people died in a plane crash Wednesday morning just north of Duluth in St. Louis County, according to authorities.

The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office says the crash happened at 8:12 a.m. near the 8300 block of Pequaywan Lake Road in unorganized township 54R13. The plane is identified as a 1946 Aeronca 7CCM, tail number N308ED.

The people involved in the plane crash were Bryan Paul Handyside, 60, from township 54R13, and Matthew William Joseph, 64, from Duluth.

Handyside and Joseph are co-workers at Cirrus - a personal aviation company - but the aircraft being flown was privately owned.

Handyside, who is reported to have 30 years of piloting experience, is believed to have been piloting the plane, with Joseph as the passenger.

According to a press release, a state officer received a call from Air Force rescue of a registered aircraft beacon that had been alarmed. Possible wreckage was observed from a spotter plane and when officers arrived, they found a crash site in a wooded area.

The Sheriff’s Office says the aircraft was believed to have left the Duluth International Airport earlier Wednesday morning.

The cause of the crash is unknown at this time, and the FAA will investigate the crash.