Authorities identified on Wednesday the victims in the crash of a small plane this week near the Bay Bridge.

Pilot Richard Hess, 63, and passenger Janet Metz, 56, both of Ellicott City, died Tuesday when the rental plane crashed in a field near the Ellendale Manor community in Stevensville, state police said.

Witnesses told police that the white-and-red Van’s RV-12 aircraft hit the ground and burst into flames.

Hess and Metz were pronounced dead at the scene.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are working to determine the cause of the crash.

“It’s still early in the investigation,” NTSB spokesman Keith Holloway said Wednesday.

“Investigators are continuing to examine the aircraft. I believe that they were able to document the scene, and they’re still in the process of collecting information.”

According to the Van’s Aircraft website, the plane is a two-seater that can be built from a kit or in a factory.

A representative of the Chesapeake Sport Pilot flight school at Bay Bridge Airport said Wednesday that the airplane had taken off from their premises, but declined to give other details.

Holloway said he could not discuss the involvement of the flight school.

He said the investigation could take a few days. It could then take five to 10 days for the NTSB to release an initial report.

He said it could take 12 to 18 months for the NTSB to determine the cause of the crash.

Investigators were reviewing air traffic control communications and looking at weather and radar data.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.