NTSB Releases Preliminary Report on Fatal Tennessee Crash

Aircraft’s owner was killed and a passenger seriously injured.

Zach Vasile

Friday, July 04, 2025 at 09:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Ryan Ewing

NTSB logo and image [Credit: Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

A preliminary NTSB report details a small plane crash in Dunlap, Tennessee, on June 24, which killed the 79-year-old owner, Wendall Trimble, and seriously injured 55-year-old passenger Ashish Sircar.
The injured passenger, who was undergoing flight training, recalled starting at a different airstrip but had no memory of the flight or accident.
Investigators found no mechanical malfunctions with the engine but observed significant aircraft damage, including an 8-inch ground scar and left-wing damage with tree foliage and yellow paint transfer.

See a mistake? Contact us.

A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is shedding light on a small airplane crash in Tennessee in June that killed one person and badly injured another.

The aircraft, a Piper J3C-65, crashed near a private airstrip in Dunlap on the afternoon of June 24. According to WTVC-TV in Chattanooga, local police identified the occupants as owner Wendall Trimble, 79, of Dunlap, and Ashish Sircar, 55, of Florida. Trimble was killed while Sircar suffered serious injuries.