Pilot Of A Plane Crash That Appeared To Be A “Couple Of Days Old” In Yavapai County Has Been Identified

The pilot of a plane that crashed near Interstate-17 back on December 13th has been identified.
Authorities say the crashed at the time appeared to be a “couple of days old.” Yavapai County Sheriff’s officials say a rancher called to report finding remnants of the crash on remote ranch land off of Flower Pot Road, east of I-17 near Highway 169. The rancher found the crash site along with a body. Deputies arrived and confirmed the crash of a single-engine airplane and searched for more bodies. None were found. The pilot has been identified as 23-year-old Mingwei Du, who was a Chinese student who was attending a Phoenix university. The identification of the pilot was delayed in order to locate family in China. The National Transportation Safety Board continues to investigate the crash.