MARYSVILLE, Ohio (AP) - A West Virginia National Guard pilot performing air maneuvers for recertification was killed in a plane crash at a central Ohio airport.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol identified the pilot as 42-year-old Michael Scott Lakin of Charleston. Dispatcher Doug Webb says he was injured in the crash around noon Thursday at the Union County Airport and died later at a hospital.
Airport general manager Ed Rusch (rush) says Lakin was performing low-altitude aerobatics for an on-site examiner when his plane crashed just south of the airport's runway in Marysville, 25 miles northwest of Columbus. Rusch says aerobatic pilots must be recertified periodically to perform at air shows.
West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin said in a statement that Lakin was also a pilot for the state and that Lakin was proud to serve his country.