ELKHART — A small single-engine plane flipped while landing late this morning at the Mishawaka Pilots Club Airport west of Elkhart.

Two were aboard the small craft but neither sustained injuries, unless you factor the ego of the plane's pilot, Steve Lesher of Elkhart. “Just pride. Tremendously injured pride,” he said.

The accident occurred around 11:30 a.m. Lesher and Roy Marchant, a passenger, took off from the Mishawaka Pilots Club Airport earlier in the morning for a routine look around and while landing, the craft veered off the edge of the landing strip into snow, leading to the flip.

Lesher, a longtime pilot, said he had lost control of the rudder of the airplane, a Luscombe.

Elkhart County Sheriff's Department Lt. Travis Adamson said the Federal Aviation Administration was called to investigate, as is the norm in such instances.

Marchant of Elkhart, downplayed the incident. “It's slow motion. It's not all that scary, I guess,” he said. “I wouldn't call it a serious accident.”

The most complicated thing, Marchant continued, was getting his seatbelt off after the crash while hanging upside down.

Sheriff's department and Baugo Fire Department officials responded to the crash. The Mishawaka Pilots Club Airport, a small landing strip, is located in Baugo Township at 29580 C.R. 20, between C.R. 1 and C.R. 3.





View Plane crash in a larger map