Pilot identified in fatal plane crash in Eagle Mountain Lake

NORTH TEXAS – The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the pilot who died when his plane crashed into Eagle Mountain Lake earlier this week.

Stephen Lee Spence, 60, of North Richland Hills, died when the single-engine Champion Model 7EC he was flying crashed at 12:40 p.m. Monday.

The incident was classified as an accident.

The Tarrant Regional Water District said the plane crashed at the north end of the lake near Indian Creek Slough with one person on board.

Fort Worth Fire Department divers recovered the pilot’s body, but TRWD determined the plane was too damaged to remove the body at the time.

CBS News Texas Chopper captured footage of the mostly submerged small plane, with the tail number visible from the air and the plane’s owner identified as a North Richland Hills man.

Multiple agencies assisted in the response, including Tarrant Regional Water Law Enforcement, Eagle Mountain Fire and EMS, Fort Worth Fire, the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office and Texas Parks and Wildlife.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA are investigating the crash.