At approximately 4:02 p.m. Monday, the Boone County Communications Center received a 911 call reporting a plane had crashed at the Boone County Airport, located at 1600 East 250 South in Lebanon.Officers with the Lebanon Police Department arrived to find the pilot being evaluated and treated by Lebanon Fire Department and Boone County Emergency Medical Services.
Witnesses reported the plane, which was identified as an experimental 1972 Houlihan RTH Jungster Bi-Plane, was landing on the grass runway at the Boone County Airport. After the main landing wheels touched down on the ground, the aircraft flipped over landing upside down. The plane was piloted by James Petko, 55 years old from Mishawaka, Indiana. Petko was able to extricate himself from the plane prior to the arrival of first responders. Petko was transported to an Indianapolis hospital with minor injuries.
The Federal Aviation Administration was notified and is investigating this incident.