Another plane down

Arnold Sten wrote:
A Cherokee with four persons on board when down just after take off from
Harrisburg Capital City Airport (my home base) Runway 26 earlier this
afternoon. Details are sketchy, at best. I just returned from the FBO at
that airport and folks there can say very little about this incident.
Here is a preliminary news report:
http://www.thewgalchannel.com/news/4651740/detail.html

I'll post further details as they become available.
Arnold Sten

As promised, more information:
The downed plane was indeed a Cherokee (contradictory news reports
indicated that the plane was some type of Cessna). The plane was piloted
by Andrew Lee, a CFI from Tennessee with over 1300 hours in his
logbook. Again, conflicting news reports had stated that he died in the
hospital; Not so. He is in critical condition at the Allentown (PA) Burn
Center. His 50-year old wife, and two young daughters did not survive.
We are being told that the NTSB might issue a preliminary report by this
Friday.
More information can be found at:
http://www.thewgalchannel.com/news/4657443/detail.html

Arnold wrote:

He is in critical condition at the Allentown (PA) Burn
Center. His 50-year old wife, and two young daughters did not survive.

This accident is an absolute tragedy and my greatest fear as a pilot.
I am deeply saddened for this man and fellow pilot.

--
Peter

Amen. My greatest fear, too. If I was him, I don't think I'd want to
live. I notice a report said the airplane was a 235, but other reports
talk about the pilot getting out, but not his wife, and the pilot
trying to open the passenger door to get the family out. That would
make it most likely a PA-32 variant. The guys at the airport were
looking at the pics in the local paper (I'm based only 20 mins from
where the crash happened) and figured it was a Six of some kind. Hope
it's not a fuel selection problem, with those four tanks and it not
being his plane. My prayers are with all concerned...

Mike,

The pilot, Andy Lee, is an acquaintance of mine. The airplane was a
Cherokee 235 or Dakota (I saw it several months ago and just don't
remember). Andy, as a CFI, often flew from the right seat, so I
wouldn't be surprised if he was able to get out.

I'm horribly saddened by this crash and am wondering what happened. I
almost always discount witnesses who state the engine was sputtering as
I've had that occur in a glider accident; nevertheless, the media
reports are that the airplane was not climbing well and that Andy did
make a call to the tower indicating he had a problem.

It always hurts when someone who flies is hurt in an aircraft, when
it's someone you know the pain is geometrically increased.

All the best,
Rick

Mike Granby wrote:
Amen. My greatest fear, too. If I was him, I don't think I'd want to
live. I notice a report said the airplane was a 235, but other reports
talk about the pilot getting out, but not his wife, and the pilot
trying to open the passenger door to get the family out. That would
make it most likely a PA-32 variant. The guys at the airport were
looking at the pics in the local paper (I'm based only 20 mins from
where the crash happened) and figured it was a Six of some kind. Hope
it's not a fuel selection problem, with those four tanks and it not
being his plane. My prayers are with all concerned...

Rick,

Sorry to hear of the loss of your friend's family, and of the suffering
he's undergoing. The right seat thing would explain the reports, which,
as usual with the media, are mixed. I agree, too, about the
unreliability of eye witnesses.

Sincerely,

Mike.

Amen. My greatest fear, too. If I was him, I don't think I'd want to
live.

You got that right.

I've strapped my kids in the back seat since they were in baby buckets. If
they go, I go.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Arnold Sten wrote:
A Cherokee with four persons on board when down just after take off from
Harrisburg Capital City Airport (my home base) Runway 26 earlier this
afternoon. Details are sketchy, at best. I just returned from the FBO at
that airport and folks there can say very little about this incident.
Here is a preliminary news report:
http://www.thewgalchannel.com/news/4651740/detail.html

I'll post further details as they become available.
Arnold Sten
Here's the text of a feature story about pilot Andrew Lee, taken from
Tuesday morning's Harrisburg Newspaper:

Andrew Lee, the pilot who lost his wife and daughters in Saturday's
plane crash in York County, has spent a lot of time teaching others to
fly, even donating his services to an organization called Angel Flight.

Angel Flight ferries seriously ill or injured passengers who could not
afford to fly to and from treatment centers. He also is a pilot for the
Civil Air Patrol, the all-volunteer civilian auxiliary of the United
States Air Force based in Nashville.

Lee, 48, remains on the critical list in the burn unit at the Lehigh
Valley Hospital in Allentown from injuries in the crash at the Bankridge
Mobile Home Park in Fairview Twp.
His wife, Diane, 50, and their daughters, Allison, 13, and Amy, 11
died from smoke inhalation and extensive burns, York County Coroner
Barry Bloss said yesterday.

Friends describe Lee as a good pilot and a devoted family man.

"I can't imagine losing your family like that," said Bonnie Bandy, 64,
who lives a few doors down from the Lees in Brentwood, a Nashville
suburb. "What does he have to come home to? I don't know what he'll do
when he does get well. We're all very concerned."

She said the family had lived in the neighborhood for about 12 years.

"He was totally a family man, he did a lot of things with them," Bonnie
Bandy said. "He loved his girls very much. They were very good
neighbors. The girls went out every Halloween selling things for
different school projects."

John Jacobus knows all about Andy Lee's flying. Both men are pilots with
the Civil Air Patrol, and Jacobus said his friend was a good pilot.

"He talked about family a lot, always mentioned them in one way, shape
or form when we flew together," he said. "This is just mind-boggling. I
am in shock even today. He's such a good guy, always volunteering to
help others."

The single-engine Piper Cherokee went down about 12:45 p.m. Saturday,
crashed into a mobile home and exploded, causing a fire that destroyed
two other mobile homes. No one on the ground was seriously injured by
the crash. The plane crashed moments after taking off from Capital City
Airport.

The Associated Press reported that the Lees had taken off from a
Nashville airport, and made an unscheduled stop in Charleston, W.Va. The
family continued to Pennsylvania, stayed overnight with friends in
Mechanicsburg, and had planned to travel Saturday to Connecticut.

An investigation into the cause of the crash could take months,
officials have said. Lee was a licensed commercial pilot and flight
instructor, according to Federal Aviation Administration records.

Roy Beardon lived close to the Lees but did not know the family well.

"He was in the printing business, that's the only thing I knew. I didn't
even know he flew until this happened. I was out to get the paper this
morning, and Jim Bandy pulled into my driveway to tell me. Neither of us
related to it being Andy until somebody told us it was Andy from up here
at the end of the street. We're all in shock," he said.