HAMPTON TOWNSHIP – Two people were killed when their small plane being used for instruction crashed Thursday afternoon near Kemwah Lake in Sussex County.

The FAA alerted public safety agencies that a single-engine Cessna 172 en route to Sussex County Airport from Essex County Airport had gone missing just before 3 p.m.

The plane was found on the ground in the Bear Swamp Wildlife Management Area near Lake Kemah around 4 p.m.

Both people on board the plane, the pilot and a passenger, died in the crash. State Police identified them as Glen M. Devries, 49, of New York, NY and Thomas P. Fisher, 54, of Hopatcong.

The plane was built in 2017 and registered to John H. Tangles Jr. of Bristol, Virginia, according to FAA records.

The FAA in its preliminary report described the crash as being an accident that happened under unknown circumstances. The report said the plane was involved in instructional activity.

The airport's website lists five flight schools based at the airport located in Fairfield Township just north of Caldwell.

Representatives of the county-owned airport on Friday morning did not respond to New Jersey 101.5's request for more information.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ

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