LOCK HAVEN — The National Transportation Safety Board has concluded pilot error caused the 2024 airplane crash in Clinton County that killed a student pilot on her second solo flight.

The accident likely would not have occurred had Maisie E. Bitler, 17, established an appropriate climb air speed and altitude after she pulled up during final approach to the William T. Piper Airport in Lock Haven, the NTSB said.

It lists the probable cause of the crash as Bitler’s premature turn to the crosswind leg of the traffic pattern at low air speed and altitude.

The agency’s final report on its investigation into the July 4, 2024, crash states that flight track data provided by the Federal Aviation Administration showed Bitler, who had logged only 30 minutes of solo flight, had departed Williamspor

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