Witnesses Report 8-10 Beers Consumed Shortly Before Flight

According to a preliminary NTSB report, the pilot and passenger of a 1948 Ryan Navion A had consumed eight to 10 beers shortly before a March 30 crash in North Valley, CA.

Pilot Grant Linderman, 31, and passenger Michael Aiello, 28, died when the aircraft went down about 15 miles north of Los Banos shortly after take off. It was enroute to Hollister in Kern County.

According to California's KFSN-TV, Patrons at a local bar told investigators they overheard Linderman and Aiello talking about going out and doing aerobatics stunts in the plane.

According to the NTSB report, "Prior to discovery of the missing airplane, detectives from the Los Banos Police Department interviewed family and friends of the pilot and passenger. During the course of the interviews detectives determined that both the pilot and passenger had each consumed between 8 to 10 beers between 1800 and 2400 on March 29, 2007.

"Prior to the flight, the pilot and passenger had departed from a local bar in Los Banos where patrons had overheard discussions between them about doing some "crazy" aerobatics."

The crash site was located late the next afternoon by the Civil Air Patrol on privately owned wetlands about 20 miles north of Los Banos, near the western boundary of the San Luis National Wildlife Refuge. Debris covered a half mile, according to the Associated Press. The site's only access was by foot or ATV.

FMI: Read The Full NTSB Prelim