U.S. Senate Candidate Killed in Iowa Plane Crash

The pilot who died in a plane crash near Iowa's Dubuque Regional Airport around 11 p.m. Monday night was U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Douglas Butzier, Butzier's wife told KCRG-TV.

Butzier was running for the U.S. Senate as a Libertarian in Iowa against Democratic Rep. Bruce Braley and Republican Joni Ernst.

U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Douglas Butzier was killed in a plane crash Monday in Iowa. (Image credit: KCRG-TV)

Butzier was the only person in the plane when it crashed. According to the Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, the 59-year-old had been an emergency medicine physician in Dubuque for 17 years.

U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Douglas Butzier was killed in a plane crash Monday in Iowa. (Image credit: KCRG-TV)

Via KCRG-TV:

A release from Lynn Lunsford with the Federal Aviation Administration’s public affairs office said a single-engine Piper PA-46 crashed about a mile north of the Dubuque airport runway after taking off around 10 p.m. from Ankeny Regional Airport. Key West Fire Chief Brian Arnold said the plane crashed near the 8700 block of Military Road.

Dalsing said the plane missed its first approach to the runway and crashed while approaching for a second time. Around an inch and a half of rain fell in the Dubuque area throughout the day and into the night Monday, though Dalsing said it wasn’t clear if weather played a role in the crash.

KCRG-TV has the complete story, below: