Two survive fiery plane crash

Two men survived the crash of their small plane Wednesday afternoon at Glacier Park International Airport north of Kalispell.

The pilot and passenger suffered minor injuries when their Cessna 210 crashed nose-first on landing, 300 feet south of the north end of the airport runway at 3:17 p.m.

The first radio contact made by the distressed plane was at 3:11 p.m., when the aircraft was 17 miles west of the airport. At that time, the pilot reported smoke and fire in the cockpit. One minute before the crash, voice communications from the plane became unintelligible, according to airport manager Mike Daigle.

Sections of the plane burned upon impact. When the first responders arrived, they found the plane's occupants sitting on the ground outside the aircraft.

Responders included Glacier International Airport firefighters, Evergreen fire department and Flathead County Sheriffs Office.

The flight originated in Spokane and was apparently headed to Glacier Park International to meet up with some people there, Daigle said.

The names of the occupants have not been released, but both were reported in stable condition Wednesday evening at Kalispell Regional Medical Center.

The crash closed the airport's main runway until the wreckage could be cleared. Incoming commercial flights could not take off or land because of the closure.

Daigle said he hoped the runway could reopen sometime Wednesday evening, but that depended on towing the Cessna wreckage out of the area and into a hangar. Before this could be done, he said, the remaining fuel had to be drained from the aircraft tank and any fuel spills cleaned up.

The FAA is investigating the cause of the crash. The National Transportation and Safety Board is not expected on the scene at this time.