Two men headed for EAA AirVenture in a Piper Cherokee died on Saturday afternoon when they crashed into Lake Michigan shortly after departing from Batten Airport in Racine, Wisconsin.
Coast Guard rescue crews located the airplane submerged in the water a few miles off the coast near Milwaukee at around 5:30 p.m., an hour and a half after it crashed. The bodies of both men were found inside the airplane. The 1975 Piper was based at Batten Airport.
Radar contact was lost about 20 minutes into the flight, according to the FAA. The pilot was flying VFR when the Cherokee disappeared and was not in contact with ATC.
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