Police: Man Crashed Plane Into His Own Home

Duane Youd died in the crash; his wife and a child in the home survived
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 13, 2018 6:00 PM CDT
Updated Aug 14, 2018 1:03 AM CDT
Police: Man Crashed Plane Into His Own Home After Assaulting Wife
The scene of a plane crash is blocked off as Federal Aviation Administration officials investigate the area in Payson, Utah on Monday, Aug. 13, 2018. Authorities say the small plane has crashed into a house in Utah, killing the pilot.   (Scott G Winterton /The Deseret News via AP)

A Utah man flew a small plane into his own house early Monday just hours after he had been arrested for assaulting his wife in a nearby canyon where the couple went to talk over their problems, authorities said. The pilot, Duane Youd, died, the AP reports. His wife and a child who were in the home survived despite the front part the two-story house being engulfed in flames, Payson police Sgt. Noemi Sandoval said. Investigators believe the twin-engine Cessna 525 belonged to Youd's employer and that he intentionally flew into his own house around 2:30am; Sandoval said he was an experienced pilot. It wasn't immediately clear who employed Youd or whether he was authorized to take the plane. It's also unknown if the child in the house is related to Youd.

Youd, 47, was arrested about 7:30pm Sunday after witnesses called police to report that he was assaulting his wife, Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Spencer Cannon said. The couple had been drinking and went to American Fork Canyon to talk about problems they were having, authorities said. Youd was booked on suspicion of domestic violence and posted bail, Cannon said. Youd requested an officer escort him to his home so he could get his truck and some belongings around midnight. That occurred without incident, Sandoval said. Within hours, Youd was taking off in the plane from the Spanish Fork-Springville Airport about 15 miles north of his house. He flew directly to his neighborhood and smashed into his house, Sandoval said.

(More plane crash stories.)

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