Lengthy crash inquiry seen
Lengthy turnpike plane crash inquiry seen

By Sheila Stogsdill

Published: April 30, 2008

MIAMI, OK — An investigation into why a plane crashed on the Will Rogers Turnpike could take up to a year, a Federal Aviation Administration official said Tuesday.

Clair E. Tromsness, 72, of Quapaw was killed Monday when the high-performance plane he piloted nose-dived onto the turnpike near Miami.

"A preliminary cause should be released in a couple of weeks,” said Roland Herwig, FAA spokesman. "It could take anywhere from two months up to a year before finding out any permanent cause (of why the plane crashed).”

Authorities examined the crash as the plane's propeller, engine and cockpit lay strewn across the the westbound side of the roadway. The plane's tail was on the eastbound side.

No passengers were on board the aircraft and no motorists were hurt.

Tromsness had told family members the home-built, single engine aircraft was having problems.

He left the Miami airport shortly before the plane crashed.

The plane was modeled after a World War II fighter plane.

Tromsness' wife, Florence, said he had owned the plane for about a year.

"He was really still trying to learn the plane,” Florence Tromsness said. "He hadn't had a chance to fly it very much, and he'd been wanting to for the last several days.”

Florence Tromsness said her husband had reported problems with the Turbine Legend since he purchased it.

"It's been giving us trouble,” she said. "It hasn't been completely finished.”

Witnesses reportedly saw the plane exhibiting problems in the air prior to the crash, doing flip-flops and then shooting straight up in the air before coming down fast and hitting the ground hard.

A businessman, Tromsness started the Miami Missionary Tent Manufacturing Co. in 1980. The company manufactured and shipped tents to 135 countries for use in Christian ministry revivals and for wedding and party rentals.

He retired and turned the business over to his son, David, in the 1990s.

Contributing: The Associated Press