A father and son died Thursday night when their private plane crashed in a rural area of Illinois after entering a “descending spiral” during a storm. The potential cause, according to a relative, was a malfunction in the aircraft's weather tracking system.
Jimmy Don Lewis, 48, was piloting a Beechcraft Baron 55 with his 22-year-old son, Brayden Ty Lewis, when the plane lost contact with air traffic control shortly after departing from St. Louis Regional Airport. Investigators believe the crash occurred around 11 p.m. local time, approximately 22 minutes after takeoff.
Kelsey Lewis, the daughter of Jimmy Don Lewis and sister of Brayden Ty Lewis, told The Daily Mail that the plane’s tracking software was off by 30 minutes. She suggested this inaccuracy may have led her father and brother to believe they could safely navigate through the storm.
"My dad, when it came to flying, he was very, very, cautious of everything. Very cautious," Kelsey Lewis stated, emphasizing her father's experience and careful approach to aviation. Preliminary flight data indicated the aircraft may have attempted a turn to avoid the storm before entering the spiral.
The family had traveled to Illinois earlier that day. Jimmy Lewis and his son had attended a St. Louis Cardinals baseball game while Kelsey and her fiancé were picking up a new car. The crash occurred as Jimmy and Brayden Lewis were flying back to Arkansas.
Kelsey Lewis recounted an unusual sense of unease about her father and brother's flight as storms moved into the region. After the plane failed to land at its intended destination in Arkansas, family members began contacting authorities to determine their whereabouts and the reason for the lost contact.
Flight tracking data showed the plane's last known position was near Waterloo, Illinois. The Monroe County Sheriff's Department was alerted, and Kelsey Lewis, her mother, and Brayden's girlfriend were asked to come to the station. Authorities confirmed the discovery of the plane and two deceased individuals at 7:51 a.m. the following morning.
Kelsey Lewis described her father and brother as generous individuals who were very close and enjoyed flying together. They had both obtained their pilot licenses and frequently took short trips for leisure. In honor of Jimmy and Brayden, the family plans to establish the Lewis Memorial Sports Scholarship at Kansas High School, where Brayden was a football quarterback and Jimmy was an active community member.