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Preliminary report on Frisco pilot's crash released
Glenn A. Smith, right, died at the Quad-City Air Show on Sept. 1. Smith's plane made a sharp descent after a banking maneuver. Photo courtesy of the Hoppers.
By Anthony Tosie, atosie@starlocalnews.com
A preliminary report has found that the plane piloted by Glenn Smith, who died earlier this week in a plane crash at an Iowa air show, did not hit another plane before crashing. The preliminary report was made based on footage and eyewitness accounts from individuals who attended the Quad-City Air Show in Davenport, Iowa.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, there was no evidence that Smith's Aero L-39 Albatross jet clipped one of the two other planes as they were performing a team maneuver mid-air. The three pilots were all members of the Hoppers flying team.
"During the crossover break maneuver, the lead airplane first entered a climbing maneuver, the left wing airplane entered a right turn and then the right wing airplane entered a left turn with adequate longitudinal spacing," the report states. "During the maneuver, the accident airplane entered the right turn, descended, and impacted the terrain. A post-impact fire ensued. No evidence of any in-flight collision with the other airplanes was observed."
Smith, 59, died when his jet was unable to pull out of a 45-degree banking maneuver. The plane crashed at approximately 1:25 p.m. on Sept. 1.
According to a website for the Hoppers, Smith had accumulated more than 2,000 hours of flight time in 24 years of flying experience. Of his 2,000 hours of flight time, 600 came in jets. In 2006, Smith retired from his job as an executive at Tyler Technologies to focus on his passion for flying.
In separate statements, the Hoppers and Tyler Technologies commemorated Smith as a loving family man, friend and colleague.
A memorial service for Smith was held at Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Chapel in Allen this morning.
The following are comments from the readers.
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
notakitty wrote on Sep 8, 2012 5:13 PM:
" Very sad my prayers are with you. I've been sad since we went to the airshow. Up until the airshow my dreams were to fly. I no longer wish to. "
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