Pilot killed in plane crash

Police say an experimental aircraft crashed just after takeoff from the Richland airport, killing the pilot.

Police Capt. Mike Cobb said 72-year-old Charles Bigelow was the only person aboard when the plane went down Thursday afternoon.

Witnesses say the plane had reached an altitude of about 250 feet when the engine began to sputter and the aircraft crashed to the runway.

The Tri-City Herald reports that Bigelow reached 257 mph in a Shelby Ultimate Aero Car during a speed run in 2007, setting a Guinness World Records standard for production cars.

Pullman

WSU, UI merge food sciences

The University of Idaho and Washington State University will merge their food science departments into a new school.

The Palouse campuses are eight miles apart and already share many resources.

The new partnership will benefit the Northwest’s $17 billion food processing industry.

The school’s combined faculty will number about 25 and will have an enrollment of about 75 undergraduate and 35 graduate students. Students will take required food science courses at each institution. Their diplomas will be awarded by their home universities.