Report details fatal plane crash

A small twin-engine plane had an engine fire and was flying low and erratically before crashing, federal officials report.

The Cessna 320 crashed July 1 near Round Rock, killing its pilot and lone occupant.

In a preliminary report issued Friday, the National Transportation Safety Board said the aircraft took off from Lago Vista, about 20 miles northwest of Austin, and flew 45 miles east before turning north, where its flight track data link ceased.

The aircraft appeared to be headed back to the Lago Vista airport when a woman driving near Round Rock said she saw the plane flying low and erratically with its left engine aflame. Another witness in Round Rock said the plane was sputtering as it flew overhead.

It crashed in a wooded area west of Interstate 35.