SABINE PASS, Texas (KPLC) – The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report into the Southeast Texas plane crash that claimed the life of a Southwest Louisiana businessman.
The Jan. 8 crash claimed the life of Carl Krielow, 71.
Carl Krielow(Port of Lake Charles)
The NTSB’s preliminary report says Krielow was piloting a Beech A36 with tail number N5677X. He took off from the Jennings Airport at 1:51 p.m. and was heading to Scholes International Airport in Galveston, Texas, at an altitude of 6,000 ft.
While en route to Galveston, Krielow was in contact with air traffic controllers in Houston, the report reads. Around 2:30 p.m., Krielow was given clearance to descend to 4,000 ft., which Krielow acknowledged.
Flight surveillance data shows that at 2:31 p.m., Krielow entered a rain shower. The plane then made a descending right turn before radar contact was lost.
Around 3 p.m, authorities learned of a single-engine plane crash near Knight Lake, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said. A U.S. Coast Guard crew later found the wreckage in a Marsh between Salt Lake and Knight Lake.
Krielow’s body was recovered the next morning, just before 9:30.
Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) track and wreckage site.(National Transportation Safety Board)
The NTSB report says the debris was spread over a 360 ft. by 160 ft. area, with major parts of the plane separated.
Wreckage site locations.(National Transportation Safety Board)
The report shows that the first section of the debris field included the left wing and aileron that had fractured at the wing root. The second section included the outboard right wing separated near the mid spar and the right pilot’s seat. The third section included the propeller, engine, cowling, and cockpit instrumentation, which were submerged in the marshy terrain. The final section included the aft cabin and empennage. Smaller portions of doors, insulation, and aileron were located between the major wreckage areas.
There was no evidence of a fire, and the plane’s flaps were not extended at the time of the crash, the report showed.
Weather radar information from 2:30 p.m. Jan. 8. The circled area shows the rain shower the flight entered before the crash.(National Transportation Safety Board)
The NTSB said details of the report are preliminary and subject to change. The cause of the crash has not been determined. The full preliminary report can be read below.
Krielow was a well-known businessman in Southwest Louisiana with ties to multiple agriculture, construction, and real estate companies. Krielow, who lived in Jeff Davis Parish, was a former commissioner of the Port of Lake Charles.
Port officials sent the following statement on his death:
“The Port of Lake Charles team is stunned and saddened by the loss of Carl Krielow, whose service to Southwest Louisiana we knew firsthand.
“During Mr. Krielow’s tenure as Commissioner, the Port set cargo records in multiple sectors, emerged from unprecedented hurricane damage to new levels of capability, and secured its standing as a top-10 U.S. port.
“We will long appreciate his lasting contributions to the Lake Charles Harbor and Terminal District, and we offer prayers and condolences to the Krielow family.”
Krielow also won the St. Jude Dream Home, a fundraiser that benefits the cancer research hospital for children, in 2022.
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