There was power loss before plane crash that killed ex-NFL player Russ Francis, investigator says

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (AP) — A federal investigator said the small plane crash that killed former NFL tight end Russ Francis and another man at an Adirondack Mountains airport occurred after the engine apparently lost power. Francis was 70 years old. He and 63-year-old Richard McSpadden had just taken off from the Lake Placid Airport on Sunday afternoon in a single-engine Cessna 177 when the plane encountered trouble. National Transportation Safety Board investigator Todd Gunther said at a briefing Tuesday that the plane’s engine had apparently lost power. Francis was a three-time Pro Bowl selection with the New England Patriots who won a Super Bowl with the 1984 San Francisco 49ers.