NTSB: Late 2011 Before Probable Cause

CROWLEY, La. (AP) — A preliminary report about a fatal plane crash near Crowley doesn't give a likely cause for the wreck that killed three people and injured two on Dec. 18.

Spokesman Ted Lopatkiewicz tells The Advertiser it likely will be late next year before the National Transportation Safety Board suggests a probable cause.

The report says one witness said the engine made a loud pop as the plane rose to about 200 feet after takeoff from Le Gros Memorial Airport.

Two witnesses said the plane's nose leveled slightly, the right wing dipped and the plane crashed.

The wreck killed 56-year-old pilot Jeffery Dille of Sulphur; 63-year-old Wendell Keith Nielson of Lafayette and 33-year-old Irving John Gaspard of Youngsville.