Probe into small plane crash could take months

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BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — Investigators say they have completed their examination of the site where a small airplane piloted by a Utah aircraft mechanic crashed, but it may take months to find the cause of the fatal accident.

Jarrod Dearden died in the crash Monday just 10 miles from Bozeman's airport. The 34-year-old mechanic from Ogden had borrowed the single-engine Cessna to fly to Bozeman and work on a friend's aircraft.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office say investigators are looking for witnesses who saw or heard the Cessna about the time of the crash.

The NTSB expects to release a preliminary report next week, but lead investigator Wayne Pollack expects it will take several months to determine a cause of the crash.

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