Planes collide over ’Glades; 3 die Authorities search swamp for possible fourth crash victim
Three people are dead after two planes collided and crashed into the Florida Everglades, authorities said Tuesday.
Rescuers were searching for a possible fourth person in the remote region in western Miami-County that is accessible only by airboat or helicopter.
The planes— a Piper PA-34 and a Cessna 172 — fell from the sky around 1 p.m. near mile marker 23 on the Tamiami Trail/Southwest Eighth Street at 227th Avenue, about nine mileswest of Miami Executive Airport.
They were identified as Jorge Sanchez, 22; Ralph Knight, 72; and Nisha Sejwal, 19.
Preliminary information was that those inside the aircraft were training, said Miami-Dade Police Detective Alvaro Zabaleta.
“Which leads us to believe that you had a pilot and a trainer or a trainer and a student, and in another plane, a trainer and a student,” Zabaleta said. “That’s why we’re thinking perhaps there is a fourth person.”
Though authorities have not said who owns the planes, the fuselage of one is labeled “Dean International” and www.flymiami.com
That 35-year-old company has had 21 incidents in the past 20 years, including three fatal crashes, the NTSB said.
Robert Dean, owner of the flight school whose website says it has has taught 7,000 students from around the world, did not
return messages.
Calls to the school were disconnected by whoever answered the phone.
In releasing the school’s history, the NTSB stressed that “we are not able to verity for certain that the operator is the same entity.”
Incidents from the past two years, described in NTSBaccident reports:
June 29, 2017: During his first solo flight, a student pilot of a Cessna 152 had a hard landing and landing gear collapse on a runway at Miami Executive Airport that left the aircraft with “substantial damage.” The student survived, a final report said.
July 1, 2017: A private pilot died during a nighttime flight that took off from Miami Executive Airport. A Cessna 152 registered to Air Christian Inc. and operated by Dean International Inc. crashed in Everglades National Park in Homestead. Dean International reported the pilot missing on July 5, and the wreckage was found that night, a preliminary report said.
July 13, 2017: An instructor was not hurt and a private pilot being trained was slightly injured when their Cessna 172M had engine failure and made a forced, late night landing on Crandon Boulevard on Key Biscayne. Their flight began at Miami Executive Airport. The Cessna was registered to C&G Aircraft Parts Inc. and operated by Dean International Inc. The plane struck tree branches and a light pole, a preliminary report said.
May 3, 2018: A private pilot and a pilot-rated passenger were seriously injured after a Cessna 152 heading toward Miami Executive Airport crashed 24 mileswest ofTamiami. During a night flight, the pilots lost control of the plane after flying into “instrument meteorological conditions” and while in clouds, entered into two spins and recovered from both before crashing, a preliminary report said.
On Tuesday afternoon, rescuers initially didn’t know if it was one aircraft down or if the fuselage had split in multiple pieces, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue spokeswoman Erika Benitez said.
But by 1:50 p.m., Benitez said rescuers found thattwo planes had crashed. Responders included Miccosukee police, Florida Highway Patrol, park rangers, private air boat operators and the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board as well as MiamiDade firefighters and police.
Local authorities will release the names of the deceased, and Alvarez said at 5 p.m. that they had not been identified and their families had not been told what happened. The NTSB will determine what may have caused the crash.
The debris field iswest of Krome Avenue, about five miles west of the Miccosukee Resort & Gaming. It is a popular region for aviation students to train.
The Florida HighwayPatrol said while the investigation is underway, U.S Route 41/Tamiami Trail/Southwest Eighth Street will be closed indefinitely across Miami-Dade County from Krome Avenue west to the Collier County line.
Travelers between the coastsmay wish to take Alligator Alley instead.
About 20 minutes after the crash was reported to 911, WSVN-Ch.7 news aerial footage showed debris from the white planes spread out over a large area. The video did not show flames or smoke rising from the wreckage.