Before his small plane dropped from the sky, the pilot transporting a medical patient to the Chicago area radioed that he was low on fuel.
The twin-engine Piper Navajo crashed in north suburban Riverwoods late Monday night, killing the pilot and an elderly couple with deep ties to the Chicago area, but sparing the lives of a medic and a co-pilot on board.
Investigators found no fuel in or around the plane’s damaged gas tanks but said it was too early to tell whether lack of fuel caused the crash.
Killed were pilot William Didier, 58, of Cedar Grove, Wis., along with John Bialek, 80 and his wife Ilomae, 75, of West Palm Beach, Fla., and formerly of Streamwood and River Forest. John Bialek had a blood infection and was returning to the Chicago area to be near family, his son John Bialek said.
