Federal authorities have released their preliminary report after a deadly plane crash in Truckee in March.Â
The plane crashed while approaching the Truckee-Tahoe Airport, killing 57-year-old Liron Petrushka and 58-year-old Naomi Petrushka of Incline Village.
In its report, the NSTB says the airport control tower and the runway lights were turned off when the crash happened on March 30th, just after 6:30 p.m.Â
The plane, a Daher TBM700, was on its return flight from Denver and descending into the Lake Tahoe area when the pilot tried to activate the runway lights.
A weather report shows it was lightly snowing at the time of the crash.
The plane crashed about 3,200 feet away from the end of the runway near some railroad tracks.
You can read details in the NTSB report below -Â
Investigators have confirmed the two people who died in a plane crash near Truckee last month were husband and wife.
The Nevada County Sheriff's Office have identified the victims as 57-year-old Liron Petrushka and 58-year-old Naomi Petrushka of Incline Village.
Authorities say they were identified through DNA analysis.Â
Naomi previously taught at the University of Nevada, Reno as an adjunct professor in the Economics Department in the College of Business.Â
According to investigators, their plane crashed while on approach to the Truckee Tahoe Airport.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash. It urges anyone with surveillance video or other information about the crash to contact them at witness@ntsb.gov
UPDATE APRIL 1, 2024:
A former University of Nevada professor is one of two people who are reported dead in a small plane crash near Truckee Saturday night.Â
UNR tells us Naomi Petrushka taught several semesters at the school, including fall 2022 & 2023, and spring 2021 & 2023. Petrushka was an adjunct professor in the Economics Department in the College of Business.Â
She's believed to have died along with Liron Petrushka, although the Nevada County coroner has not officially released any names yet.Â
Upwest, an investment firm that funds and fast-tracks Israeli founders breaking into the American market, posted on Facebook that Liron and Naomi Petrushka were aboard the plane when it crashed. It says the couple were integral to building up the company.
The plane, a Daher TBM 700, left Centennial Airport in south Denver at 4:22 p.m. Mountain Time, according to flight data on FlightAware.com. It was scheduled to arrive at the Truckee Tahoe Airport three hours and 16 minutes later.
Instead, the single-engine turboprop crashed around 6:40 p.m. while on approach to the airport, the Federal Aviation Administration said Sunday.
The Aviation Safety Network says preliminary investigations show that the plane missed its approach to the northeast-to-southwest runway here at the airport.
The plane made an 180-degree turn over the airport, climbing in the sky in a go-around to attempt to land, but instead the plane made a left-hand stalling spiral, taking out a tree near the Truckee River.
The Truckee Police Department confirmed two people died, but did not provide further information about the victims.
No homes were damaged, but railroad tracks at the crash site required repairs, KCRA-TV reported.
Moderate snow was falling at the time of the crash with visibility of a half-mile (0.8 kilometers), though winds were light, the news station reported.
The Truckee Police Department, Truckee Fire Protection District, Nevada County Sheriff, Nevada County Coroner and Truckee Tahoe Airport Staff all responded to the scene.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
