GLENVILLE, N.C. — A preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board says a South Carolina pilot killed in a North Carolina plane crash said he couldn’t monitor the plane’s orientation in regards to the horizon.

News outlets report 59-year-old pilot Gary Lee Huttleston told air traffic control that he had “lost his attitude indicator” just before radar contact and communication was lost.

The report released Monday says that Huttleston was flying a single-engine plane alone in March from Tennessee to South Carolina. It says the plane was on course to Aiken when Huttleston said he was no longer able to maintain course and attitude.

The plane disappeared from radar and Huttleston was found dead the next day near the wreckage south of Whiteside Mountain.

The plane was kept for further investigation.