Crash

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    Widow Awarded $10 Million for Wrongful Death in Chopper Crash


    The widow of John Goble was awarded $10 Million for wrongful death after the chopper he was in was flown between two electrical towers, striking the power lines. The vintage 1951 military helicopter was en route to an aircraft and classic car show in Riverside, CA. The crash occurred on Nov 7, 2009, over two years ago.

    Goble co-founded Sectra North America, the North American unit of Linköping, Sweden-based PACS firm Sectra, in 1997, and had served as its president ever since. Prior to that, Goble was medical marketing manager for Hewlett-Packard’s workstation division.

    Two million was awarded in compensation for lost wages; the remainder was for loss of companionship. The pilot owned Classic Rotors, a vintage aircraft museum.

    A case against Goble and the utility company involving the surviving family of another deceased passenger, James Jantz, is still pending.

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    One Fatality in Single Engine Crash, Oswego County NY

    What: Wittman W-10 Tailwind (Built by John R. Wing) practicing touch and go
    Where: Fulton, 1 mile SW of Oswego County Apt.- KFZY, NY
    When: Dec 1, 2011, 2:30 pm
    Who: pilot
    Why: After practicing touch and go the pilot crashed in a wooded area called Old Incinerator Hill, off Whitaker Road, near the line between Fulton and Volney, a mile sW of Oswego County Airport.

    Witnesses heard the engine sputtering before it went down in a heavily wooded area. Part of the wreckage was found fifteen feet up, in a tree.

    flight registration #N865JT

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    NZ Chopper Smashed While Setting up Christmas Tree

    What: Helisika Agricultural Ltd. Aérospatiale AS 350B2 Ecureuil
    Where: Viaduct Harbour, Auckland, NZ
    When: Nov 23, 2011
    Who: 1 pilot
    Why: After setting a pylon for a christmas tree, the chopper’s roter struck a cable, and crashed the chopper.

    Pilot Greg Gribble was hospitalized and released.

    Te Wero Bridge has been closed to pedestrians until the investigation is complete.

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    Cirrus Wreck Kills 4 in Rural Illinois

    What: Marion Flying Club Cirrus SR-20 en route from Marion Municipal Airport
    Where: CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill
    When: Nov 26, 2011 10:30am
    Who: 4 fatalities
    Why: The one-engine Cirrus SR-20 was flying in rainy, overcast conditions when it crashed in a soybean field on a farm unincorporated McHenry County, killing the four aboard the plane. Marion businessman Ray Harris and his daughters Ramie and Shey were killed in the crash, along with one of the girl’s boyfriends. On impact, the plane shattered into debris which was spread over 100 yards. The plane carries a parachute, which had been deployed but it was tangled in a tree, which may have contributed to the wreck.

    The pilot, Harris, had been flying one of his daughters back to Wheaton College.

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    Three Children, Three Adults lost in Arizona Crash

    What: Ponderosa Aviation Inc. Rockwell Commander 690A en route from Mesa, Ariz to Safford, Arizona
    Where: Apache Junction, Pinal County, AZ
    When: Nov 23, 2011
    Who: 6 fatalities
    Why: On a thanksgiving flight that took off at 6:15, the pilot was flying to Safford and struck a rockface at the Superstition mountains. The children’s mother, Karen Perry, was not aboard. The fuselage is jammed between rocks.

    The victims of the crash included Joseph Hardwick, 22, mechanic; pilot and aircraft owner Russell Hardy, 31; pilot Shawn Perry, 39; and Perry’s three children, Morgan, 9, Logan, 8, and Luke, 6.

    The plane had just left Mesa’s Falcon Field when it crashed. It is a six hour hike from a campground to the wreckage. A ten member sheriff’s rescue team was flown in by chopper, and hiked down from a mountaintop.

    The flight path that the pilot took is a controversial one. The FAA redesignated Phoenix airspace, raising the floor altitude for commercial traffic at almost the same height as the tallest peak in the Superstitions (5,057 feet). Planes such as this one flying east from Mesa’s Falcon Field must either go around the peak or request permission to enter commercial airspace to fly above it.

    Webcam footage:

    News Coverage

    Views of the wreckage

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    Indian Civil Aviation Official Meets with Mangalore Crash victims

    Vayalar Ravi, Indian Civil Aviation Minister met or called (on the 18th) victims of the Mangalore crash to discuss their compensation claims. A meeting on the 19th included representatives from the airline, the government and the insurance company.,

    The crash occurred in May of 2010, when the Dubai-Mangalore Air India Express jet overshot the runway, killing 158 people aboard.

    However other business was also being handled during the meetings.

    The outcome of the meetings has not yet been released.

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    Flight School Cessna and Military Piper Collision In Argentina

    What: (Fuerza Aérea Argentina) Argentine Air Force Piper PA-A28-236 Dakota light aircraft
    Where: Mercedes Airport, Argentina
    When: 21-NOV-2011 09:45 LT
    Who: 2 fatalities
    Why: On approach to Mercedes Airport, an Argentine Air Force Piper PA-A28-236 Dakota collided with an aviation school Cessna 152.

    Both the flight school crew members in the Cessna 150 were killed in the crash. The Piper PA-28 landed safely. The two military personnel aboard the Piper survived.

    According to witness Boloni Eduardo, the Air Force plane cut the back of the Cessna with its propeller, causing it to fall

    Firefighters, police, ambulance, Air Force, and Civil Aviation Accident Investigation Board were on the scene. Mercedes is a public air field with no control tower.

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    Chopper Pilot from Belarus Dies in Congo Crash

    What: Mil Mi-8
    Where: Badondo north of Brazzaville, Congo
    When: Nov 15, 2011
    Who: 4 aboard, 1 fatality
    Why: The military chopper which had been chartered by a mining company crashed during bad weather when it tried to land.

    The pilot, Alexandre Kossiarev, was from Belarus and died in the crash.

    Three passengers were injured.

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    Cirrus Crashes in Poland

    What: Cirrus
    Where: Katowice International Airport southern Poland
    When: Nov 13, 2011
    Who: 2 men and 2 women were aboard
    Why: After takeoff, the plane disappeared 4.3 miles from the airport.

    The wreckage was found in Zyglinie Forest at 8:20 pm. The four passengers all in their late forties and early fifties, died in the crash.

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    Poconé Crash Kills Brazilian Farmer Minutes from Airport

    What: Cessna 210
    Where: Poconé Municipal Airport, Brazil
    When: Nov 12 2011
    Who: 4 aboard, 4 fatalities
    Why: Twelve miles from the airport, the pilot apparently lost control and crashed. The plane took off at 5:12 pm, and crashed 12 km later in the Pantanal region of Mato Grosso.

    Martin Wagner, his son James, two mechanics named Dede and Alcindo died in the crash.

    Wagner, who is a local cattle farmer, was reported missing by his family, after which a search plane was sent out and did not locate them. The charred wreckage of the plane was located the next day after sunrise, only minutes from the airport. The owner of the plane died in the crash.

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    Mangalore Crash Families Long for Closure


    Plane crash cases take a long time to settle, and the families of the Mangalore Crash can vouch for it, having been waiting since the date of the crash in May of 2010. Families who are still waiting on a settlement, and will be back in court this November. They aren’t looking for extraordinary measures, but want compensation for flight 812–the Air India Express Dubai-Mangalore in accordance with the Montreal Convention. 152 died in the crash.

    According to The National, Airlines are required to pay compensation of 7.5 million rupees (Dh560,000) per passenger to families of crash victims, just as a Kerala judge ordered. Then that judge was overruled in favor of Air India Express. This November, the case will move into the highest court to rule in favor of the victims or Air India Express.

    In George’s Point of View


    It’s not that simple.

    I know I have said this before, but it bears repeating.

    I must remind the families that the value of the aviation case is usually much higher than 75 lakhs.

    And this is because Tier II of the Montreal Treaty.

    The convention’s second tier deals with the portion of a claim exceeding the $155,000 limit. An airline can avoid liability for portions of claims over the limit by proving it was “not negligent or otherwise at fault.”

    I’m not a lawyer but I know from experience how it works. I have been working with wrongful death cases for years, and have learned a lot from the experience my aviation experts have graciously passed on to me.

    If you can prove provable damages, then Tier II (referred to in Article 21(2) of the Montreal Convention) Air India Express is liable to families/passengers for all personal injury or wrongful death damages exceeding 100,000 Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), unless the carrier(s) can prove that the injuries or deaths were not due to the negligence or other wrongful act or omission of the carrier or it servants or agents OR the injuries or deaths were solely due to the negligence or other wrongful act or omission of a third party.

    My guess is that the carrier will never prove this. The burden of proof is on them. If I am correct, and know the experts who have taught me, are correct, Air India Express is liable to the victims’ families for all damages under the applicable law, including but not limited to, pain & suffering of your loved one prior to death.

    They are liable for pain and suffering, the loss of support, i.e., money, the loss and enjoyment of life of the victim.

    I hope the families don’t sell themselves short, and give up all that may be coming in return for even a payment of the 75 lakhs. Accepting 75 lakhs—which may look like a lot after the losses they’ve suffered—but if they sign their name on the dotted like, they give up the right to future compensation.

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    Oklahoma Coaches and Ex Senator Die in Piper Crash in Arkansas

    What: Privately owned Piper PA-28-180 Cherokee B
    Where: Four miles south of Perryville, AR
    When: Nov 17 2011
    Who: 4 aboard, 4 fatalities
    Why: Women’s basketball coach Kurt Budke and assistant women’s basketball coach Miranda Serna were on a routine recruiting trip to Arkansas, when the plane crashed in steep terrain in the eastern Ouachita Mountains in the Winona Wildlife Management Area. The other two aboard were Former State Senator Olin Branstetter and his wife, Paula. A local deer hunter’s wife told 911 when she saw the airplane nose-diving in a swirling pattern and crashing in the forest. By 6pm, the wreckage had been located. The passengers had been ejected from the plane, which drove a six foot deep furrow into a ridge but did not catch on fire. Rescuers reached the site on YO4 Forest Access Road via four wheelers.

    Miranda Serna was in her seventh season as an assistant coach at Oklahoma State.

    The cause of the crash is unknown but it was the catalyst of an outpour of support for Oklahoma State.

    That the plane was co-owned by the Branstetters, who were from Ponca City. 82 year old Olin Branstetter was a longtime pilot.

    Eleven years ago, a plane carrying 10 crashed, killing two OSU men’s basketball players, two members of its radio broadcast team, three members of the team’s support staff and two pilots in a snow storm in Byers, Colorado.

    PIPER PA-28-180 Serial 28-1756 #N7746W
    Year of Manufacture: 1964
    Number of Seats: 4
    Certification Issue Date: 29 Sep 1978
    Builder Certification Code: Type Certificated
    Aircraft Speed: 107
    Aircraft Type: Fixed wing single engine
    Aircraft Category Code: Land
    Airworthiness Date: 17 Jun 1964
    Aircraft Weight:
    Mode S Code: 52475442


    NTSB investigating Aviation Accident in Perryville, Arkansas
    November 18, 2011
    The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has dispatched investigators to examine the circumstances of an aviation accident that occurred yesterday afternoon near Perryville, Arkansas, involving a Piper PA-28-180 (N7746W).

    Jason Aguilera is the NTSB Investigator-in-Charge. He will receive headquarters support from air traffic control and meteorology. Parties to the investigation include the Federal Aviation Administration, Piper Aircraft and Lycoming.

    Terry Williams will be the public affairs officer on scene.Once he arrives in Perryville, Mr. Williams can be reached on his cell phone at (202) 320-2594 or via email at terry.williams@ntsb.gov.

    NTSB Office of Public Affairs: 202-314-6100

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    Single Engine Plane Crashes in Cote d’Ivoire, UN Attempts Rescue

    What: Aéro-club d’Abidjan Piper PA-28-161 Warrior II
    Where: Near Daloa Airport, Cote d’Ivoire
    When: Nov 14, 2011 5 p.m.
    Who: 4 aboard, 4 fatalities
    Why: After taking off from Daloa, the Aero-club-owned Cessna crashed.

    Witnesses say the pilot was clearly in trouble and the plane made several pirouettes in the air before falling.

    Initially there was one survivor who died in the hospital. The UN Operation in Côte d’Ivoire responded to the scene of the crash, and the UN’s Bangladeshi batallion (BANBATT) assisted in the recovery.

    The pilot was a local pilot. The three white foreigners have not been identified but one had been hired by a local logging company.

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    José Francisco Blake Mora Dead in Chopper Crash

    What: Fuerza Aerea Mexicana Aérospatiale AS 332L Super Puma
    Where: Temamatla , Edo de Mexico
    When: Nov 11, 2011, around noon
    Who: 9 aboard, 9 fatalities
    Why: A Mexican government helicopter en route from Mexico City to Cuernavaca carrying 9 passengers crashed, killing everyone aboard.

    Those aboard included José Francisco Blake Mora, Secretary of the Interior, Felipe Zamora Castro, Legal Affairs and Secretary of the Interior Ministry DH, Jose Alfredo Garcia Medina, director of social communication Interior Ministry, Diana Miriam Hayton Sanchez, technical secretary of the office, and Major Rene de Leon, Lt. Col. Philip Bacio Cortes, Jorge Luis Juarez Gomez, Ramon Escobar Segundo and Pedro Teninete Becerra.

    The chopper was en route to a prosecutors meeting. It went down in heavy cloud cover, so weather is considered to be a factor. Mexico’s No. 2 official, Francisco Blake Mora, who embodied Mexican government’s get-tough attitude, is one of the victims of the crash. Mora been a key figure in Mexico’s battle with drug cartels and he oversaw disaster response, like the pipeline explosion in San Martin Texmelucan in 2010. He is the 2nd interior secretary in this administration to die in an air accident.

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    Chopper Crashes Palm Beach House


    What: Rented Robinson R22 recreational chopper
    Where: Palm Beach
    When: Nov 5, 2011
    Who: 1 pilot, 1 passenger
    Why: The rented recreational chopper struck palm trees and power lines, then clipped the house, landing in the front yard. No fatalities. The damage to the chopper is described as substantial.

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    Air Blue Chided by Sindh High Court


    The Sindh High Court Issued a demand for the public release of Air Blue’s report of the crash inMargalla Hills on July 28, 2010.

    152 died in that crash in July of 2010, nearly a year and a half ago, and the report has still not been released.

    Whatever the errors were that occurred, the report should have been released by now, especially after Air Blue made several commitments to release dates of that report. Full disclosure of accident reports is really the only way to learn from the past, and prevent future incidents. Also, it is unnecessarily cruel to keep families of the victims waiting, some of whom who are engaged in lawsuits whose results won’t be determined until after the reports are released.

    Airblue’s CEO did not appear in court, even though his presence was specifically requested by the court. A lawyer, Masood A Khan, appeared in his stead and requested more time.

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    5 Die in Hawaiian Chopper Crash into Mountain

    What: Blue Hawaiian Helicopters Eurocopter EC130 B4 helicopter departing from Kahului
    Where: Kaunakakai, Molokai island, Hawaii
    When: November 9, 2011 at 12:30 pm
    Who: pilot Nathan Cline, 30, of Kihei and 4 tourists
    Why: While on a 45 minute tour of West Hawaii, the chopper crashed into a mountain. The accident occurred on Wednesday, less than a mile from Kilohana Elementary School, right after a hard rain. At the school, students heard an explosion and saw black smoke when the chopper crashed.

    The pilot and four tourists died at the scene. Although the investigation is ongoing, according to at least one published report, the NTSB said that the pilot failed to maintain enough altitude over the terrain amid low-lying clouds.

    Two of the passengers were newlyweds, and they came from Pennsylvania and Ontario Canada.

    Blue Hawaiian, which conducts 160,000 tours yearly, leased the year old chopper from Nevada Helicopter Leasing LLC.

    Four bodies have been recovered. The fifth has been located, but is in a difficult location.

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    Hendrick Doubletake: Motorsports Crash Landing

    What: Hendrick Gulfstream G150 en route to Key West
    Where: Key West
    When: Nov 1, 2011 7:58
    Who: Rick and Laura Hendric, pilot and copilot
    Why: On landing in Key West, the plane had no brakes and skidded off the safety area. Those on board had minor injuries and were taken to Lower Keys Medical Center. Rick Hendrick suffered a broken rib and shoulder.

    The NTSB is investigating.

    We doublechecked this news item, to make certain it was not a reposting of the 2004 crash that tragically took the lives of ten of the Hendrick team and family.

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    Cessna Crash Lands on Pompano Beach Street, Pilots Walk Away

    What: ATA Flight School Cessna
    Where: Pompano Beach Air Park
    When: November 1, 2011 reported at 5:52 pm
    Who: 2 aboard, 2 survivors
    Why: A 27 year old instructor Vincent Paul Citrullo and 42 year old student pilot David Bakalar survived a crash at the intersection of Northeast 10th Street and Fifth Avenue in Pompano Beach Florida.

    The crash occurred during a ATA Flight School (Pembroke Pines) training flight while the student pilot was flying and losing altitude due to engine trouble. The instructor took the controls, and the plane struck a palm tree and a concrete pole, landing shy of Pompano Beach Air Park. Both were taken to North Broward Medical Center.

    Two fire trucks used foam on spilled fuel.

    Pilot Vincent Paul Citrullo, a former C130 crew chief and vet, is credited with landing the plane after the throttle became inoperable, and securing their survival, in spite of the plane breaking in half.

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    PJ Helicopters Pilot Injured in Chopper Field Crash

    What: PJ Helicopters Hughes MD500D turbine
    Where: SW of Colusa
    When: 10 27, 2011, 3 PM
    Who: pilot
    Why: Thursday Bradley Hall had ported electrical workers to a platform when the chopper failed, lost altitude and made what has been described as a crash and a hard controlled landing. It crashed in a field off Wescott Road at Colusa National Wildlife Refuge.

    Hughes was airlifted to Enlie Medical Center in Chico.

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    Northern Thunderbird Air Crash in Vancouver BC


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Dana Low

    What: Northern Thunderbird Air Beechcraft 100 King Air en route from Vancouver International Airport to Kelowna International Airport
    Where: Russ Baker Way, near Vancouver International Airport, Canada
    When: Oct 27, 2011 4 pm
    Who: 9 occupants, 2 fatalities
    Why: Reporting difficulty to ATC after a warning light came on in the cabin fifteen minutes after takeoff, the pilot, Luc Fortin attempted to return to the airport. The plane crash landed short of the runway. On impact, the fuselage separated from the tail section by 10 yards and was on fire beside the road. Fortin died of his injuries, and the co-pilot died later with burns on 80% of his body. There were 9 people aboard, and all of them were hospitalized. The plane had hit the ground and skidded, it’s wing striking a car. Two on the ground (in the car) were injured by debris.

    Fortin, a 14,000-hour pilot, died at Vancouver General Hospital, and leaves a wife Dagne and sixteen month old daughter Katelyn.

    After weeks in intensive care, co-pilot, Matt Robic, 26, died at Vancouver General Hospital on November 16, 2011 with 80% burns. He leaves his wife Natalie Redfearn.

    On landing on Russ Baker Way (street), the plane burst into flames. Passersby on the street pulled over and rushed to the burning plane to pull those aboard from the flames. Initially both pilots were alive and were rushed to the hospital in critical condition. Read the accounts of some of those involved by following the “read more” link below.

    The flight had been chartered as a private rental by an executive group with business in Kelowna.

    Jeremy Kerr, John Redmond, Haim Peri, Shawn Nagurny, Lonney Lee and half a dozen other good samaritans had been driving by (or worked in the immediate area) and pulled over to run into the burning plane and rescue those aboard. Thanks to their efforts, seven people survived. Carolyn Cross, Lorelei Sobolik, Cameron Sobolik, Tony (Troy?) Zanatta, Kelly Jablonski, Jeff McCord were among the survivors.

    The black box and data therein was recovered.

    Survivor audio


    Raw Video

    Read more

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    Helicopter Crashes in a Street in Mexico

    What: Gobierno del Estado de Mexico Agusta A109S Grand
    Where: Peréz Valenzuela (street), Del Carmen district, in Coyacán, Mexico
    When: Oct 21, 2011
    Who: 4 aboard, 2 fatalities
    Why: If you imagine going about your normal daily life, you do not expect a chopper to fall in the street, crush your cars and slam into your house.

    A chopper owned by the government of Mexico fell in the streets of Coyoacán, between Guillermo Pérez Valenzuela and Avenida Universidad, landing on two vehicles and striking the wall of a house. Because of a fuel spill, the area was cordoned off.

    The chopper is an Agusta A-109-S Grand, XC-EDM

    Initial coverage was confusing and indicated no fatalities, then three fatalities, then two fatalities with identities unknown.

    Eventually two people were confirmed to be deceased, and two as survivors, but the identities took some time to sort out. Two names were released: Juan Estevan Rodriguez (Ruiz Rodriguez) and Julius Caesar Maturano Gomez were reported to be the fatalities—that is, one of the pilots, and the assistant of the secretary of Metropolitan development. We can assume this is correct because of reports of officials attending the funerals in #7 Rue insurgentes in Sapotian neighborhood, Santa Maria Cuevas, Zumpango.

    Fernando Alberto Garcia Cuevas (the government official) and the surviving pilot were rushed to Hospital Ángeles Pedregal by emergency responders. Cuevas suffered bleeding of a kidney, which is being addressed by catheter embolization. The surviving pilot, Juan Manuel Ramírez Rivera will be undergoing surgery for broken vertebra in his chest, when he is stabilized.

    The pilots attempted to land and save the lives of their passengers and we acknowledge their heroic effort.

    Our sources have one photo of the chopper in question:


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Luis Tena Orozco – AeroImagenes de Mexico

    There was significant confusion in the reportage, so that based on reported coverage, all I can say is this:

    There may have been a flaw in the rotor of the aircraft, though it is not clear if it was something that the pilots had been informed of prior to the flight, or if there was a failure during the flight. There was also a statement published that the chopper fell out of the sky, and was seen plummeting, and that the rotor stopped because the hasp detached (or did not detach) from the main rotor. I am sure the truth come out in the investigation; it is too soon to know what happened, but if any parties in the know want to comment or make corrections, we welcome the input.

    As always, condolences to the families of Rodriguez and Gomez, and best wishes to the recovery of the injured.

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    Yemeni Military Crash Kills 5

    What: Yemen Air Force Antonov
    Where: Al-Anad Air Base, Yemen
    When: October 25, 2011
    Who: 15 aboard, 5 fatalities
    Why: A plane carrying eight Syrian engineers and seven Yemenis crashed while landing at Al-Anad on October 25 in the southern province of Lahij.

    Three Syrian technicians and one Yemeni died at the scene. Four, then five deaths have been reported.

    The condition of the survivors has not been released.

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    Private Cessna Blows Up Over Veracruz


    Click to view full size photo
    Contact photographer Paul Chandler

    What: Cessna 210G Centurion #N5894FN en route from Puebla to Villahermosa, Tabasco.
    Where: Veracruz Mexico
    When: October 23, 2011, 10.00 local tim
    Who: 2 fatalities
    Why: Over the town of Angel R. Cabada, the plane was flying in a westerly direction, made a turn and then exploded in the air. Documents found on the bodies belong to a married couple, Reggie and Andrea Henkart . The occupants were employees of U.S. company Agfa Phoenix.

    Rescue services responded to the call but there was not much they could do for the victims but secure the scene.

    There was a slight rain at the time of the event, and the location is one that is difficult to access in a sugar cane field and tropical rainforest. The two aboard were Americans.