Two killed include Air Force Academy cadet after small plane crashes in Johnson County
Federal officials are investigating a plane crash that killed two people on Thursday night near County Road 1123 in Johnson County.
The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the pilot who died as Nick Duran, a 20-year-old U.S Air Force Academy cadet from Cleburne. The name of his passenger hasn’t been confirmed by authorities.
The Air Force Academy shared a statement from its superintendent, Lt. Gen. Richard M. Clark, on social media. “On June 24, we lost one of our own,” Clark said. “C2C Nick Duran died as a result of a single-engine plane crash while he was home in Texas on leave. The impact of losing Nick has been felt throughout our Academy.
“He was our brother — a friend, teammate, and classmate — and will always be a part of USAFA. I am so proud of how our cadets have leaned on each other and honored Nick’s life.
“While words cannot lessen the loss felt by his family, we want to send our heartfelt condolences to Nick’s family and friends — you are in our thoughts and prayers.”
The plane went down about 5:15 p.m., a National Transportation Safety Board spokesman said.
A Federal Aviation Administration representative said the plane had been declared missing, leading to the search that located the aircraft several hours later Thursday night, but did not indicate where the plane may have been headed.
The NTSB said the plane took off from Cleburne Regional Airport.
The crash site was in a field off the 2700 block of CR 1123 near Godley, according to the medical examiner’s office. Duran was pronounced dead at 9:45 p.m.
The NTSB identified the aircraft as a American Aviation AA-1A airplane. It was registered to Duran, who was certified as a private pilot, according to FAA records.
The plane crashed just west of Cleburne Regional Airport, the Texas Department of Public Safety told WFAA-TV, a Star-Telegram media partner.
This story was originally published June 25, 2021 at 2:01 PM.
