Man flies plane into his home after fight with wife

PAYSON, Utah (AP):

A Utah man flew a small plane into his own house early yesterday just hours after he had been arrested for assaulting his wife in a nearby canyon where the couple went to talk over their problems, authorities said.

The pilot, Duane Youd, died. His wife and a child who were in the home survived despite the front part the two-storey house being engulfed in flames, Payson police Sgt Noemi Sandoval said.

The crash occurred at about 2:30 a.m. in Payson, a city of about 95 kilometres south of Salt Lake City.

Investigators believe the twin-engine Cessna 525 belonged to Youd's employer and that he intentionally flew into his own house; Sandoval said he was an experienced pilot. It wasn't immediately clear who employed Youd or whether he was authorised to take the plane.

It's unknown if the child in the house is related to Youd, Sandoval said.

Youd, 47, was arrested about 7:30 p.m. Sunday after witnesses called police to report that he was assaulting his wife, Utah County Sheriff's Sgt Spencer Cannon said. The couple had been drinking and went to American Fork Canyon to talk about problems they were having, authorities said.

Youd was booked on suspicion of domestic violence and posted bail, Cannon said. Youd requested an officer escort him to his home so he could get his truck and some belongings around midnight. That occurred without incident, Sandoval said.

Within hours, Youd was taking off in the plane from the Spanish Fork-Springville Airport about 15 miles (25 kilometres) north of his house. He flew directly to his neighborhood and smashed into his house, Sandoval said.