Was A Student In Utah State University's Aviation Program

A student enrolled in the aviation program at Utah State University was fatally injured Monday when the Diamond DA-40 he was piloting on a solo flight went down under unknown circumstances.

The pilot, 21-year-old Frank Marino De Leon Compres from the Dominican Republic, was a senior in the universities aviation technology and professional pilot programs. He was working towards his commercial license, according to university spokeswoman Maren Aller.

Television station KSL reports that the DA-40 went down in an area of hilly farmland between Hyrum and Paradise, UT south of Logan. The flight had departed from Logan-Cache Airport (KLGU), and the weather was not a factor, according to Aller. The wreckage was located by pilots operating out of KGLU, according to the report.

The program was established in 1939, and the accident was the first fatality in the program's history, Aller said. There are currently about 180 students enrolled in the program.

FMI: https://aste.usu.edu/aviation