Wednesday, May 30, 2018
MELVILLE, Suffolk County (WABC) --
A small vintage plane crashed in Suffolk County on Long Island Wednesday afternoon, killing the pilot.
Authorities said the pilot, identified as Ken Johansen, was the only one on board the small plane that crashed at 1:52 p.m. along Northcote Drive in Melville.
Ken Johansen was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, a Naval aviator and a professional airline pilot. He leaves behind a wife and two children.
The plane took down a number of trees as it was on the way down but did not hit any houses. It landed about 200 feet from the nearest home, authorities said.
No one on the ground was injured.
College student Lauren Peller was in her home with her mother when the plane went down across the street next to woods.
"We heard a loud noise, almost like a tree fell on the house, and we ran down the stairs and there was smoke and the plane was on fire," said Peller, adding that her mother then called 911.
The crash involved a GEICO Skytypers plane from Republic Airport in East Farmingdale.
Johansen was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, a Naval aviator, and a professional airline pilot. He leaves behind a wife and two children.
An investigation is underway involving the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.
The World Famous GEICO Skytypers Air Show Team is a flight squadron of six vintage WWII aircraft based on Long Island performing precision flight maneuvers at select air shows across the US.
"A careful and thorough investigation is already under way," Skytypers said in statement. "We are working with local law enforcement, the Federal Aviation Administration, and the National Transportation Safety Board. Our thoughts are with Ken and his family."
Johansen first flew with the Skytypers at the age of 8, according to his bio posted on the stunt team's website. It said he "caught the aviation bug early in his life" from his Skytyping instructor pilot father.
As the old Greek saying goes: you can take the clay pot to the spring to get water every day; it only has to break once.
Narrative:
The vintage aircraft spinning in the air just after takeoff then crashed along a road in Melville. There was a post-impact fire.
The pilot died.
The plane was one of the GEICO Skytypers that flew at the Bethpage Air Show at Jones Beach State Park over Memorial Day weekend.
Sources:
http://abc7ny.com/small-plane-crashes-on-long-island/3540092/
https://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/vintage-plane-crash-melville-1.18845916?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
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https://www.geicoskytypers.com/aircraft-2/
Date: 30-MAY-2018
Time: 13:52 LT
Type:
North American SNJ-2 Texan
Owner/operator: Geico Skytypers
Registration:
C/n / msn:
Fatalities: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities: 0
Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location: Melville, Long island, Suffolk County; NY -
United States of America Phase: Initial climb
Nature: Demo/Airshow/Display
Departure airport: Republic Airport, Farmingdale
Destination airport: