Pilot in plane crash was trying to land as copter took off

FISHERS, Ind. (AP) - Investigators say a pilot who was killed when a small plane crashed at a suburban Indianapolis airport was trying to take off as a helicopter was trying to land nearby.

The update on the Aug. 31 crash in a grassy area off a runway at Indianapolis Metropolitan Airport in Fishers was part of a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board. Federal officials are investigating what caused the crash and a final report is expected sometime next year.

Authorities have said 78-year-old Norman Levine of Carmel was the only person aboard the single-engine propeller plane, which crashed after taking off from the airport and caught fire. No other injuries were reported at the airport that is primarily used by smaller planes.