SARANAC LAKE - Autopsies performed on the two men involved in Sunday's plane crash in the High Peaks determined that the men died from the impact of hitting Santanoni Peak.

Daniel R. Wills, of North Bangor, and Ronald E. Rouselle, of Malone, crashed into the south face of Santanoni Peak en route to the Malone-Dufort Airport Sunday evening. The men left the Saratoga County Airport at 4:20 p.m.

On Monday, a search was initiated by state police and forest rangers after the men turned up missing. Using helicopters, the searchers located the wreckage of the Piper Cherokee 140 Tuesday morning on Santanoni Peak and later transported the bodies of the men to Adirondack Medical Center at Saranac Lake so the autopsies could be performed.

Wills, 48, owned the Piper Cherokee and has been identified by state police as the pilot.

State police said an investigation into the cause and circumstances surrounding the crash is ongoing. The Federal Aviation Administration, the National Transportation Safety Board and forest rangers are assisting state police in the investigation.

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Contact Mike Lynch at 891-2600 ext. 28 or mlynch@adirondackdailyenterprise.com.