An Oklahoma father and son died on their way home from a St Louis Cardinals game after their plane crashed in bad weather. 

Jimmy Don Lewis, 48, and his son, Brayden Ty Lewis, 22, were found dead in the wreckage of their Beechcraft Baron 55 by rescue workers Friday morning. 

Their plane is believed to have crashed right before 11pm on Thursday evening near Waterloo, Illinois, KSDK reported. 

However, rescue crews were not dispatched until around 2.30pm after a report of a possible aircraft crash came through, the Monroe County Sheriff's Department said. 

Police worked with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to determine a search area and the plane's last known location. 

Aerial search efforts were thwarted due to bad weather, not allowing crews to 'safely conduct' operations. 

'The Illinois State Police aircraft responded and conducted an aerial search utilizing thermal imaging technology; however, the weather conditions and cloud cover prevented crews from locating the aircraft,' the sheriff's department said. 

Around 6am, the Waterloo Fire Command activated a drone search. Two hours later, the aircraft was located in a tree line near a rural field and the two men were confirmed to have died. 

Police believe the pair ran into bad weather on their way home to West Siloam Springs, near the Oklahoma-Arkansas border, after the Cardinals game, where the team lost 8-4 to the Milwaukee Brewers. 

Flight data suggested the pair had tried to turn the aircraft in a possible 'attempt to avoid the storm, before entering what appeared to be a descending spiral,' the sheriff's department said. 

'Radar contact was subsequently lost.' 

The crash remains under investigation by the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board. 

The Lewis family appeared to be an all-American family who loved to travel and recently welcomed a grandbaby. 

Lewis' wife, Jill, posted photos from several of the family's trips, including a romantic European trip with her husband, where the pair visited Rome and Venice, Italy, among other cities, in May 2024. 

The family, who lives in a $1 million home, also loved to take ski trips together to Winter Park in Colorado. 

Brayden, who went by Ty, recently took a trip to Spain, France, and Italy with his girlfriend Payton, as well as a boys' trip to Mexico. 

Brayden's social media showed the young man loved football, having played in high school, and enjoyed bull riding as a child. 

He also enjoyed riding his motorcycle and working out, his social media showed. 

His sister, Kelsey, who welcomed a new baby a few months ago, posted her grief on Facebook, alongside a photo of herself, her father, brother, and husband in the private plane together from an unknown date. 

'Dad insisted on taking a picture he said: “Take a picture of all of us have to have them for memories,” and anyone who knows dad, he didn’t like pictures of himself, and I already know Ty was thinking: "Really a picture without my hat?" 

'I love you both.' 

Payton also posted a tribute on Instagram, writing 'I will always love you. Till we meet again, my love.'  

The Daily Mail has reached out to friends and family for comment.