Riverside County coroner's investigators were working Sunday to confirm the names of the two men who died when a single-engine plane crashed in Joseph Canyon.
The plane, initially believed to be Cessna, was later identified as a two-seater, high-wing Taylorcraft BC-12D, according to a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman. Little identifying information could be recovered from the fiery crash, which occurred about 10:30 a.m. Saturday.
Witnesses reported hearing the engine rev and seeing the plane go down, but who what went wrong was unknown. National Transportation Safety Board investigators are in charge of the probe.
One resident said the plane crashed on a level hillside, with the wreckage was all within a short distance.
A coroner's spokesman confirmed that both victims were male, but he declined to name them until they could be positively identified via dental records or some other method.
It was unclear where the plane took off, or if the pilot tried to make radio contact with an area airport tower before the accident.
A wildfire started by the crash, on the edge of the Cleveland National Forest, was put out before it caused any damage.
