Georgia couple killed in single-engine plane crash in NC

SYLVA, N.C. - A Georgia couple were killed when their single-engine plane crashed near an airport in western North Carolina.

The state Highway Patrol said Wednesday evening that 58-year-old James David Lovins and 59-year-old Rhetta Ann Lovins, both of Vidalia, Ga., were killed in the crash.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the Beech C24R crashed off the end of a runway at Jackson County Airport in Sylva. FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the crash happened around 2 p.m. when the plane attempted to land.

Sylva is located about 50 miles west of Asheville.