The pilot who fatally crashed his airplane near the Lincoln Airport in October as he headed to a hunting trip came close to the runway before pulling up and turning the engine to full power, then went into a steep banked turn before crashing into the ground, according to a preliminary report from National Transportation Safety Board investigators released Friday.
Dan Arrotta of Spokane, Washington, was killed in the Oct. 24 crash just north of the Lincoln Airport. The report shows he had made a last-minute decision to fly to Lincoln, rather than drive, to join his brother, also a part owner of the Cirrus SR22T airplane, for a hunting trip the next morning.
He had never flown into the Lincoln Airport before, but his wife told investigators he had lots of experience flying and landing at night, though often at his home airport…