[chris]

A passenger who crawled from the wreckage of a vintage single-engine airplane remained on a 911 call for more than 10 minutes, unable to tell dispatchers where he was, after the plane went down in a wooded area of Tippecanoe County, Ind., according to authorities and a recording of the call. The Feb. 15, 2011, crash near Americus killed the pilot, a Purdue University student, 11 days later.

Anthony E. "Tony" Cole, 22, of West Lafayette, was flying a World War II-era Taylorcraft when it crashed in trees near the 6700 block of Goldsberry Road about 4:30 p.m., authorities said. His passenger, fellow Purdue student Thomas A. "Tom" Williams, also 22, climbed from the plane and called for help.

On the recording, Williams told the dispatcher he had been "just flying with my buddy" when the aircraft "went down," and said he could not describe where he was beyond being in the middle of the woods. The dispatcher kept him talking and worked to fix his location while rescue crews searched the area.

Both men were hospitalized. Cole was taken to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, where he died Saturday, Feb. 26, 2011, of injuries from the crash, Purdue officials said. His family donated his organs. Williams was hospitalized for about two weeks and survived.

Williams later told National Transportation Safety Board investigators that Cole had inspected the plane and added fuel to each wing tank before takeoff, then flew east and north along a river before turning back to the west, according to the agency's report. Williams said Cole exclaimed "Oh my God" just before the plane nosed over and dropped straight down.

The NTSB found no evidence of mechanical malfunction or failure in the engine or airframe. Investigators listed the plane, a Taylorcraft DCO-65, as having about 1,100 total airframe hours and a most recent inspection in October 2010. The report indicated the plane slowed below the speed needed to stay in the air and stalled.

Cole, a Fort Wayne native and 2007 graduate of Snider High School, held an associate degree in professional flight from Purdue's aviation technology program and belonged to the university's flight team. He was working toward a bachelor's degree in building construction management.