North Carolina State Highway Patrol has identified the two people on board a plane that crashed in Harnett County on Friday.
Troopers identified Anton van Deth, pilot, and Dwight Frye, passenger, as the two people on board the air craft. The plane, a Aviat Pitts S-2B, crashed on the property of NC Wake Boats on Holly Springs Church Road near Broadway.
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Both van Deth and Frye were pilots.
According to Federal Aviation Administration records, van Deth received his American private pilot certification in December of 2023. However, his online bio shows he lived and worked all over the world, so it is unclear if he has flying certifications dating back further in other countries.
Frye is listed as a flight instructor at Wings of Carolina Flying Club in Sanford. He has several certifications including his flight instructor certification in July of 2024 and commercial pilot certification in May of 2022.
Frye also received certifications to be a remote pilot, mechanic and repairman experimental aircraft builder.
A North Carolina State Highway Patrol trooper said they both died from the crash between two buildings.
The plane took off from Raleigh Executive Jetport outside Sanford and was in the air for less than 10 minutes before it crashed. WRAL News learned the plane was used for aerobatics.
“They’re an incredible aircraft,” said Craig Loop, a pilot that lives nearby the scene.
Loop said he's seen the plane several times a week.
"He would do everything. Barrell rolls and inverted. He would do stalls, pretty much everything you’d expect to see in an air show,” Loop continued.
One woman who lives nearby saw the plane come down.
"I heard the plane first and I looked up and I saw a small yellow plane spinning and I thought it was doing a maneuver," said Marilyn Gabel. "And then as it got closer, I started thinking pull up, pull up, because it was getting pretty close. Then, all of a sudden, it just slammed into the ground. It was pretty tough. I've never seen nothing like that before."
The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration are investigating what caused the crash. Though the NTSB said the earliest officials will arrive to the scene to investigate is Saturday.
Sky 5 flew over the scene as a blue tarp was draped over one of the boats. The scene of the crash was also near a construction site. Some charred debris and a piece of a propeller were the only signs of a crash.
"There was a bunch of black smoke, it was fuel burning from the plane," said Blane McDonald, who was pouring concrete near the site. "I'm still shaken up just thinking about it."
WRAL News is working to learn more.