FAA Looks into Type of Aircraft Involved in Prairie Grove Crash

Prairie Grove Trustee Stewart Connelly remained in critical condition Tuesday after he and another trustee crashed a small aircraft into a tree last week.

The Federal Aviation Administration said it is investigating to determine what kind of aircraft the men were flying -- a finding that could open the door to an investigation of the craft's maintenance history and why neither man had a pilot's license.

"If it's an ultralight, then you don't need licensing for that," said Elizabeth Isham Cory, a spokeswoman for the Great Lakes and Central Region office of the FAA. "A true ultralight is not an airplane."

If the aircraft is found to be bigger than an ultralight, the FAA said it would launch a full-scale investigation. If the craft was an ultralight, officials said, the issue would become the domain of local law enforcement.

Trustee David Robak, 39, was listed in serious condition at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood over the weekend, and hospital officials said Tuesday they are no longer able to provide condition updates.

FAA officials describe Ultralights as small vehicles with limited speed and range, popular for some types of recreational activity. The use of ultralights began in the 1970s when people started putting small engines on foot-launched hang gliders.

As FAA officials continued examining what is left of the craft, a spokesman for Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge said Connelly, 57, remained in critical condition Tuesday.

The men, both elected to four-year terms in 2005, had been out for some fun on a warm Friday afternoon and taken off from a field behind Village Hall, according to reports.

About 7 p.m., the aircraft crashed into a thicket of trees along Ames Road.

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