The Merced County Sheriff Coroner’s Office has identified the pilot of a deadly plane crash near Los Banos earlier this week.
Authorities said the pilot, Mahesh Chigurupati, 31, of Santa Clara, was the only person aboard the airplane when it crashed into a field in the area of Canyon Road and Interstate 5 near Los Banos.
The National Transportation Safety Board said preliminary information indicates the Cessna 172S airplane took off from Reid-Hillview County Airport in Santa Clara County on Aug. 26 at about 5:19 p.m., with the same airport indicated as the flight’s destination…