Officials: Plane crashes near Paulding-Bartow county line

PAULDING COUNTY, Ga. - Authorities in Paulding County say the pilot of a single-engine plane died Saturday afternoon after the aircraft went down near the Paulding-Bartow county line.

It happened along Lucas Lane off of Highway 61 north, close the Bartow County line. That is about 3 miles south of the south end of the Cartersville Airport runway or about 12 miles north-northwest of Paulding Northwest Atlanta Airport. It was not immediately clear if the plane had just taken off or planned to land at either airport.

Investigators got a call from a power company around 5:30 p.m. Saturday that there was a disturbance near some power lines. A private contractor of the power company discovered the plane in rough terrain underneath the power lines. When emergency crews arrived, they found the pilot had died. Deputies say the plane did not catch fire.

The plane was described by officials as a small single engine Pipe PA-28-180. Officials said only the pilot, 70-year-old Middleburg, Florida resident Paul Lewis was the only one aboard at the time of the crash.

The NTSB and FAA have been notified.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation.