MOUNT GILEAD, Ohio - The man flying the plane that crashed in a wooded area near this central Ohio town in December was in the process of receiving instruction in the airplane for insurance purposes, according to the preliminary report issued recently by the National Transportation Safety Board.

The report stated that Eric Balcom, 61, of Howard, Ohio, was flying the plane on Dec. 27 with Walden Damschroder, 67, of Elmore, a certified flight instructor. Both men died in the crash.

The accident occurred during Mr. Balcom's first flight in the plane he purchased 16 days earlier.

Mr. Balcom was a certified airline pilot who was operating the plane during the training flight that did not have a flight plan. The flight originated from the Knox County Airport in Mount Vernon, Ohio.

Witnesses reported seeing and hearing the plane flying from the east to the west just before the crash about 2:30 p.m. They reported seeing the plane flying upward before its nose dropped and crashed into a heavily wooded area.

One witness reported seeing the plane "twist" before it started to descend, the report stated.

The plane, which was substantially damaged in the crash, was a 1966 single-engine Mooney.

First Published January 11, 2007, 11:31 a.m.