Two people dead after small plane crashes near Fergus, Ont.

Two people are dead after a small plane crashed into a field near Fergus, Ontario, and caught fire on Friday morning, authorities say.

Police reported the crash occurred shortly after 10 a.m. at the intersection of Beatty Line and Wellington Road 17, between Fergus and Arthur. Both occupants were pronounced dead at the scene, with no other injuries reported.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada identified the aircraft as an amateur-built Skybolt biplane. The TSB noted the plane departed Fergus Juergensen Field Airport around 10 a.m. for a local aerobatic training flight with two experienced pilots aboard.

Emergency responders, including urban search and rescue, hazardous-materials specialists, and tactical EMS, attended the scene, and the fire was extinguished by crews. The aircraft came to rest upside down in a cornfield approximately two kilometres north of the airfield.

Investigators said they will continue gathering and analyzing information in the coming weeks, and the cause of the crash has not been released.