The airport near where a small plane went down Wednesday, killing the pilot, has no air traffic control tower, according to Federal Aviation Administration data.
Hicks Airfield, which has a runway of over 3,700 feet, is primarily a general aviation airport, meaning there is no passenger airline service like DFW International Airport or Love Field. The FAA has published advisories in recent years that outlines procedures aircraft must take when operating near airports without air traffic control towers.
It isn’t uncommon for smaller airports to operate without towers. During such situations, communication falls solely on pilots, who are responsible for communicating with one another in the nearby airspace.
A preliminary investigation from the National Transportation Safety Board said that before the 2025 crash, a video camera recorded the Beechcraft flying low above power lines while in a slight left bank with the landing gear extended. The plane continued north and began descending. It’s left bank angle increased and exceeded 90 degrees before going out of sight behind bushes and trees. The preliminary report said that the Beechcraft eventually “impacted numerous parked, unoccupied commercial vehicles with an immediate explosion and extensive postcrash fire which
consumed nearly the entire airplane.”
The remains of the wreckage, including both engines and propellers, were recovered and taken for further examination.
Wednesday’s crash remains under investigation, and authorities confirmed that the pilot died.