Businessman and glamorous wife die after boarding private plane during storm forecast
A South Carolina businessman and his wife died in a private plane crash as they attempted to land in heavy storms.
Engineering executive Phil Porter, 69, and his wife Cheryle, 66, tragically lost their lives on Saturday when the jet he was piloting crashed near Dothan, North Carolina, near Myrtle Beach.
According to the Gaffney Ledger, Porter had years of experience as a pilot before the deadly crash.
The couple took off from Spartanburg and were reportedly set to land at Grand Strand Airport in South Carolina but were diverted due to heavy storms, and crashed as they made their descent.
Their twin-engine Beechcraft plane was traveling at around 250mph when it fell from the skies.
The cause of the crash is not yet known, and authorities said they have launched an investigation into the deadly incident.
Porter owned Porter's Electric Motor Service which he inherited from his father, and his wife worked as a sales representative at the family firm.
The husband and wife both died in the crash, with no other injuries or deaths on the ground reported after their jet landed in a wooded area.
On his company's profile, Porter's Electric Motor Service is described as a mechanical maintenance and repair firm in the Gaffney, South Carolina area.
According to FAA data cited by WBTW, Porter has been certified to fly since 2013.
Although the cause of the crash is unclear, air traffic control chatter first obtained by News13 shed some light on the final moments of the couple's final flight.
Porter could reportedly be heard telling operators: 'I got some smoke in the trees at my nine 'o clock. I'm on a zero-four-zero heading. I saw him on my (database).'
Robert Katz, a commercial pilot with more than 43 years of experience, told the outlet that he believes a combination of heavy weather and pilot error may have contributed to the crash.
'It appears that his flight from Spartanburg was pretty much routine for the most part until he gets into the Myrtle Beach area where is warned about heavy weather. He's not unaware of it,' he said.
'He attempts to approach Grand Strand at exactly the wrong time, when severe weather is in the vicinity.'
Flight data showed Porter's plane, which had last flown less than two weeks before the crash, circled away from Grand Strand airport before the crash.
'He is, in effect, scared off, and then attempts to escape the area to the northwest only to find himself in thicker weather at that point, which overtakes him,' Katz said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
10 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Dad, 30, killed in plane crash leaving behind heartbroken wife and unborn baby - just months after family tragedy
The victim of a deadly plane crash in Massachusetts has been identified as a young but experienced pilot who was about to become a father. MIT scientist Geoffrey Andrews, 30, was operating a four-seater single-engine aircraft when it plummeted to the ground just outside of Boston on Thursday. His family named him as the pilot in a GoFundMe page for his pregnant wife - while revealing that he had been her rock after she lost her mother just months before. An unidentified man was also on board the plane, and Andrews' fundraiser said they were praying for the passenger as he remains in a serious condition in hospital. 'Geoffrey's family, friends, and his beloved wife Gentry are devastated and heartbroken at his untimely death Thursday morning when the plane he was piloting crashed shortly after takeoff in Beverly, Massachusetts,' the fundraiser reads. 'We thank the investigators who we trust will conduct a thorough investigation into what caused this catastrophic loss of life. 'We also pray for his passenger in the plane and are sending his loved ones strength through this difficult time.' The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed a single-engine Mooney M20F aircraft hit the ground on Sam Fonzo Drive in Beverly, on the north-east outskirts of Boston, just before 9am on Thursday. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed a single-engine Mooney M20F aircraft hit the ground on Sam Fonzo Drive in Beverly, on the north-east outskirts of Boston, just before 9am on Thursday NTSB investigators told the Daily Mail a witness reported seeing 'black smoke come from the belly of the plane' before it went down, possibly indicating engine failure. Andrews' wife, Gentry, who is six months pregnant, said she believed his plane 'experienced a serious engine issue' shortly after takeoff from Beverly Airport. 'Per witnesses in the tower his response was textbook, but the plane still went down and he died on impact,' she wrote as part of a heartbreaking Instagram tribute to her beloved partner. 'Ever the gentleman, he did his best to save the life of his passenger.' Gentry said Andrews had been flying to upstate New York to enjoy one last camping trip before the birth of their baby daughter in three months' time. 'He was so excited to become a father and told me so every day,' she wrote. Andrews' death marks a second tragedy for Gentry, after her mother, Marcia, passed away months before. His family said in their fundraiser that he had been the 'biggest support system' for her. They remembered him as a 'charismatic, beautiful soul who cared deeply for his family and friends and always had a kind word for others'. NTSB investigators told the Daily Mail a witness reported seeing 'black smoke come from the belly of the plane' before it went down, possibly indicating engine failure 'He was so excited about the upcoming birth of their baby,' the GoFundMe page reads. 'He was almost always seen sporting a bow tie and a smile. 'He loved cooking, baking, nature, was a talented amateur photographer and was oddly passionate about scuba diving. 'He loved music, often played piano, and sang in choirs for much of his life including with Gentry.' Andrews was also passionate about aerospace engineering and he dreamed of becoming an astronaut one day. He was a staff scientist at the MIT Lincoln Laboratory and a doctoral graduate of Purdue University, and Lehigh University where he was a visiting lecturer. His family said he 'loved flying, even moonlighting as a ferry pilot to build hours and experience when he was a graduate student'. 'He flew aerobatics for several years, volunteered as a glider pilot, and was working toward his CFI to be able to teach others about the joy of flight,' their page adds. Chief John G. LeLacheur and Fire Chief Peter K. O'Connor said Beverly Police and Fire Departments responded to the crash at around 9am on Thursday. When they arrived, first responders found two people trapped inside the four-seater piston aircraft, which had suffered 'significant damage'. 'The plane appeared to be resting against a utility pole,' Beverly Police and Fire Departments said in a joint statement released on Thursday. 'Two men were inside the plane, a pilot and a passenger. 'One occupant was pronounced dead on scene, and the other man was transported via medical helicopter to a hospital with serious injuries. 'At this time, there have been no reports of any ground injuries or additional property damage in the area.' Images from the scene showed the plane laying crumpled against a utility pole, across a street surrounded by leafy woodland on either side. It appears to be upright with the wings badly damaged. The main body of the aircraft was partially destroyed by the impact.
Daily Mail
15 hours ago
- Daily Mail
British nationals' remains are among the unidentified more than a week after Air India crash as death toll continues to climb
The remains of four UK nationals from doomed Air India flight 171 have yet to be identified, more than a week after the crash. There were 53 Britons onboard the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner that crashed shortly after taking off from the western Indian city of Ahmedabad on June 12. The remains of 26 victims have so far been flown to their families, including 10 to the United Kingdom. All but one of the 242 people on board flight 171 were killed when the Air India plane smashed into a residential area of Ahmedabad, where at least 38 more died. Such was the level of destruction that more than two dozen believed killed remain unidentified 10 days after the jet came down. So far more than 250 people killed in an India plane crash have been identified through DNA testing, a hospital official said Sunday as specialists near a final toll for one of the worst air disasters in decades. 'The results of the DNA sample matches for 251 have arrived,' said Rakesh Joshi, medical superintendent at Ahmedabad's civil hospital. The remains of 245 of them have been handed to relatives and include 176 Indians, 49 British, seven Portuguese, one Canadian, and 12 identified publicly only as non-passengers. 'In my opinion, the DNA matching process will soon be completed,' Joshi said in a video message. 'We are with the remaining families who will be informed by phone as soon as possible,' he added. Air India said Thursday the plane was 'well-maintained' and that the pilots were accomplished flyers. Investigators have retrieved the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder for analysis, as they attempt to find out what caused the London-bound jet to hurtle to the ground moments after takeoff. British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40 from Leicester, was named as the sole survivor of the crash. He was discharged from hospital to be a pallbearer at the funeral of his brother. Survivor Vishwash's brother Ajaykumar accompanied him on the flight but was sat on the other side of the aisle in seat 11J and sadly perished in the explosion Relations of the 53 Britons on board have since paid tribute to the nurses, teachers, lovers, parents, children and friends whose lives were tragically cut short last week. Vishwash's brother Ajaykumar who accompanied him on the flight and was sat on the other side of the aisle in seat 11J, but sadly perished Fiongal Greenlaw-Meek and husband Jamie lived in London and ran a wellness and healthy lifestyle company. The couple posted a haunting video of themselves at the airport waiting to board the doomed Gatwick-bound Air India flight that crashed moments after it took off. The couple are believed to have been in India for around two weeks and in a series of social media posts captured the happy time they had. This included getting henna tattoos, shopping for fine fabrics and other gifts and driving through chaotic traffic in a tuk-tuk. They arrived in Ahmedabad just a day before flying back with Fiongal posting in a video: 'So, it's our last night in India and we've had a magical experience. 'Some mind-blowing things have happened. We are going to put all this together and create a vlog. It's my first ever vlog about the whole trip and we want to share it.' Jamie revealed what a memorable trip they had both had. He beamed: 'We have been on quite a journey and then spending our last night here in this beautiful hotel, it's really been great way to round off the trip.' Other victims include Arjun Patoliya, from Edgeware in London, who had travelled to India to fulfil his late wife's final wishes, scattering her ashes in a river in the village where they both grew up. Bharatiben Patel, known as Bharti, 43, had died just three weeks before the crash. Their two children, aged four and eight, were left orphaned after Mr Patoliya was killed. Mr Patoliya had studied at Liverpool John Moores University and worked as a furniture designer. Witnesses of the deadly crash could do nothing but watch in horror as a fireball, fuelled by enough kerosene to carry a plane from the Indian city of Ahmedabad to London Gatwick on a non-stop nine hour and 50 minute journey, towered above them. As plumes of acrid, black smoke billowed above Ahmedabad, horror spread across the city after people realised that a plane had crashed into the dense residential area of Meghani Naga, less than a minute after taking off from a nearby airport. That horror quickly spread around the world, with the crash making headlines globally.
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
St Ives Tiger Moth pilot's memory wish takes off at 80
An 80-year-old former Tiger Moth pilot said returning to his workplace "brought back so many happy memories".Doug Collyer, who lives at Field Lodge care home in St Ives, Cambridgeshire, was granted a special wish to revisit Old Warden Aerodrome near Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, so he could reminisce about his flying days. He said it was an "emotional" trip down memory lane to the place where he used to train "felt like coming home", he said. Mr Collyer, a former flying instructor, enjoyed sharing stories with colleagues from his flying days and explored an early 20th-Century aircraft, part of the Shuttleworth Collection at the airfield. "Visiting Old Warden again felt like coming home," he said."It brought back so many happy memories. "It was also an emotional day for me, reminiscing about the good times and reconnecting with friends."He started his training in 1965 and gained his private pilot licence in 1966. In 1986 he qualified as a flying instructor and became part of the Cambridge Flying Group, which is based at the Bedfordshire airfield, until his final flight in February 2020. Mr Collyer said he trained "countless" students over the years, including close friend David, who joined him on the Martinez, manager at the Care UK home, said: "It was wonderful to see the joy on his face as he reunited with friends and shared stories from his remarkable flying career." Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
