Jeff Maneth
The three people killed in the crash of a small plane in a wooded area of Polk County on Friday afternoon were identified as the father and grandparents of Middle Tennessee State University golfer Carter Maneth.
The athlete's family were on their way to watch him play in a golf tournament at the University of North Carolina at the time of the crash.
They included Jeff Maneth, president of Anderson Frazier Insurance.
He was described as "
an innovative leader in the insurance industry who worked diligently for his customers. He was a past president of the Emerging Leaders of the Big I, Previous Arkansas Independent Insurance Young Agent of the Year, and President-elect of the Big I."
Also killed were Jeff Maneth's parents, Marion and Myra Maneth.
The 1976 Mooney M20F was en route from Chattanooga to Burlington, N.C., authorities said.
“Our hearts are with Carter and his loved ones during this unimaginable time,” MTSU Athletics said in a statement on Saturday. “We are keeping him and his family in our thoughts and prayers, and we ask the Blue Raider community to do the same.”
McGee Tyson Airport Air Traffic Control Tower called Polk County 911and reported a small plane had disappeared from the radar. At 2:23 p.m. Friday, several Tri-State Mutual Aid agencies responded to the 1700 block of Tellico Reliance Road by the Cherokee National Forest in Polk County looking for the missing plane.
Rescue personnel entered the woods near the area where the plane was last seen on the radar. At 4:54 p.m., rescue personnel reported finding the plane wreckage and three deceased individuals.
The cause of the plane crash will be under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration.