ALBANY, Ore. -- An experimental plane spun from the sky and crashed into a cornfield near Albany Friday, killing all three men on board.

Witnesses saw the "plane in a spin, out of control," said Tim Mueller, the Linn County sheriff.

The sheriff's office identified those on board as owner and pilot Louis Lamb, 49, of Sublimity, Steven Teeny, 36, of Silverton and Riley Bunn, 32, of Stayton.

Map: Where plane went down

Lamb was a Christmas tree farmer.

"There's no indication that it tried to land or skidded. It looks like it just hit where it hit," Mueller told The Associated Press.

He said it appeared that all three men died on impact.

Slideshow: Crash scene from ground

The sheriff's office said the three were on the way to a hunting convention in Utah.

Jim Heater, an owner of Silver Mountain Christmas Trees in Sublimity, knew Lamb for about 10 years.

He said Lamb, who went by the name of "Jay," was a quiet man but "always a gentleman and always congenial in his dealings." He described Lamb as an innovator who did excellent work.

"He will certainly be missed in the community, that is for sure," Heater said.

He said Lamb was an entrepreneur, working in a number of things including development and Christmas tree farming.

The plane was a Lancair ES that had taken off from Salem at 10:05 a.m. en route to Klamath Falls by way of Eugene, said Mike Fergus, spokesman for the Northwest Mountain Region of the Federal Aviation Administration.

The single-engine plane was flying at about 13,000 feet when radar contact was lost at 10:17 a.m. The plane was reported down at 10:19 a.m., Fergus said.

Deputies brought in all-terrain vehicles because the field was too soggy for regular equipment.

FAA and National Transportation Safety Board investigators were at the scene and secured the crash site for the night Friday evening.

Lancair International Inc., based in Redmond, describes the ES model on its Web site as a four-seat, fixed-gear airplane that is made from composite materials. It is about 25 feet long and has a 38-foot wingspan.

Joe Bartels, CEO of Lancair, said the Lancair ES is a kit plane -- the purchaser puts it together.

He said it is a popular and reliable plane that has been sold since around 1993.

"I think it might be the second plane that's gone down in 12 years," he said.