Pilot tried to pull out of landing before plane crashed on the doorstep of a Texas mall

A Federal Aviation Administration incident report shows that the pilot of a small plane that crashed and burned outside a Texas shopping center was trying to exit a runway before the accident.

By means ofThe Associated Press

November 23, 2023, 12:15 PM

PLANO, Texas — A pilot who died when the small plane he was flying crashed and burned on the doorstep of a Texas strip mall aborted a landing, according to an incident report released Wednesday.

Plano police on Wednesday identified the pilot of the single-engine Mooney M20 as 87-year-old Elzie Monroe McDonald of Arizona, The Dallas Morning News reported. McDonald was the only person on board when the plane crashed Tuesday.

The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the crash. But a Federal Aviation Administration incident report shows McDonald retreated from a landing before crashing.

Photos from the scene showed the wreckage in a parking lot next to a nail salon and restaurant just outside the mall in the Dallas suburb of Plano.

The accident caused a parked car to catch fire. No one was in the vehicle and no bystanders were injured, authorities said.