The pilot of Searey homebuilt that was in a mid-air collision with Cessna 172 during a Young Eagles event in western New York said his training kicked in after the two aircraft hit.”I just knew I had to keep flying the plane,” Kevin D’Angelo told a news conference. “As a pilot you train over and over again to handle situations like this, and you have to keep flying the plane no matter what’s happening.” He and his Young Eagles passenger, a nine-year-old girl, were only slightly injured after the Searey crash landed in a field near the airport at Lancaster, NY. The 172 pilot, Anthony Mercurio, and his Young Eagle 14-year-old James Metz were killed.” EAA announced the tragedy in a Facebook posting shortly after the accident.
Here is the EAA posting in its entirety. “We are saddened to report that there was a fatal accident involving a Young Eagles flight this morning (Sept. 27) at Buffalo-Lancaster Airport in Lancaster, N.Y. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board have been informed and immediately moved to investigate the accident. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the pilot and passenger involved inthe mishap. What we can confirm thus far is this: At around 10:45 a.m. EDT, a Cessna 172 aircraft went down near that airport following contact with what the FAA has reported is a Searey aircraft. The incident occurred during a Young Eagles rally being held by EAA Chapter 46 (Buffalo, NY). The pilot and passenger aboard the Cessna aircraft were fatally injured in the accident. The other aircraft involved landed safety.The names of those involved have not yet been released, pending notification of relatives. We will continue to update as details are confirmed.”
