Two men were airlifted to trauma centers with injuries Friday night when their ultra-light aircraft went down in a stand of trees in Prairie Grove Friday night.

The status of the men and the cause of the crash remained unknown as of Saturday.

The small, two-seat plane went down around 7:07 p.m. in a row of trees bordering Ames Road just west of Barreville Road.

Emergency responders arrived on the scene to find the men tangled in the trees along with pieces of their aircraft, said a statement issued by Nunda Rural Fire Chief Gary Mlekush.

After rescuers removed the men, two helicopters flew them to separate area hospitals: Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge and Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood.

Authorities have not released the names of the men.

The specific type of ultra-light aircraft that crashed also remains unknown, but such planes generally are slow, weigh less than 250 pounds and carry no more than 5 gallons of fuel.

The investigation is currently being handled by the Prairie Grove police, who could not be reached for comment Saturday. The Federal Aviation Administration does not investigate accidents involving ultra-light planes because it doesn’t regulate them.

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