NILES, Mich. — An Elkhart man died in a plane crash near Niles on Saturday afternoon.

According to a release from the Michigan State Police, Christopher McKenna, 50, was piloting an Ultra Lite single-seat aircraft when it crashed in a wooded area east of Clark Street in Niles Township. McKenna’s aircraft was last seen north of the Niles City Airport.

Cass County Dispatch requested assistance from the state police at 5:10 p.m. to help search for a possible crash. At about 5:50 p.m., the plane’s wreckage was found in the area by citizens and emergency personnel searching on foot.

McKenna was pronounced dead at the scene.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration out of South Bend.