Report gives likely cause of plane crash
Four lawsuits are pending in deaths
The deadly plane crash that killed Memphis businessman Wei Chen and three others was likely due to Chen becoming disoriented during the plane’s initial ascent and losing control as he piloted, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a report.
The December 2018 crash near Atlanta killed Chen and three members of his company’s executive staff, including John Chen, chief operating officer; Danielle Mitchell-robinson, corporate controller; and Bruce Pelynio, president of Heli Americas, a subsidiary of the company.
Chen was the CEO of Memphisbased of Sunshine Enterprise, a wholesale and distribution company of Chinese construction materials. He founded the company in 1988.
Report details rapid changes, clouds
The NTSB report indicated that once the plane was about 2,400 feet above ground, its rate of climb increased dramatically, from about 3,500 feet per minute to 9,600 feet per minute. The stick shaker — which vibrates to alert the pilot that an aerodynamic stall was detected — began to shake, and the plane decelerated to about 75 knots, or about 86 mph.
It was overcast at the time of the crash, the NTSB said, and there was a cloud ceiling at about 600 feet above the ground. “It is likely that the pilot became spatially disoriented after entering the cloud layer, which resulted in the airplane’s high rate of climb, rapid loss of airspeed, and a likely aerodynamic stall,” according to the federal agency. “The steep descending right turn, the airplane’s roll to an inverted attitude, and the high-energy impact are also consistent with a loss of control due to spatial disorientation.”
The plane then crashed about one mile from Fulton County Airport Brown Field airport. The NTSB was able to recover all the parts of the plane at the crash site and ruled there were no issues with the plane itself that would have caused trouble.
Video from a security camera a halfmile away from the crash site showed the plane descending in a left turn before it rolled upside down and disappeared behind trees. Fire and smoke could be seen on the recording shortly after, according to the NTSB. An inspection of the area indicated the plane first hit a tree before hitting the ground.
Chen owned the Cessna 560 aircraft. The flight’s intended destination was Millington-memphis Airport.
Colleague: Chen embodied the American dream
Chen moved to Memphis in 1996 to attend the International MBA program at Fogelman College of Business and Economics at the University of Memphis.
“When I came to Memphis I didn’t speak much English, I didn’t have any money and I didn’t know anyone,” Chen told The Commercial Appeal in 2011. “In the first week, I met my best friend and my future wife-to-be. Then I started my business. Memphis can offer opportunity, if you work hard.”
He started taking flying lessons in 2006 and in 2011, became the first Chinese pilot to circumnavigate the globe in a single-engine plane. He raised $250,000 for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital on the 10-week trip, which included stops at 40 cities in 21 countries. Chen was deeply involved in the Memphis business community. He was a board member for the Greater Memphis Chamber, the University of Memphis Alumni Board, the Greater Memphis United Chinese Association and the Memphis In May International Festival. He was also a member of the Young Presidents Organization and a board member at Metropolitan Bank.
In a statement issued after the crash Mike Mcannally, president of a Sunshine Enterprise subsidiary, said Chen embodied the American dream.
“That’s how he should be remembered,” Mcannally said. “I will be forever grateful to Wei for demonstrating to all of us at Sunshine Enterprise what a caring servant leader looks like and inspiring us all to learn and seek ways to be the best version of ourselves.”
Mcannally said John Chen, who helped found Sunshine Enterprise in 1998 and became COO in 2004, was patient and selfless.
“John was the jack of all trades at our company. There was nothing he couldn’t learn or do,” Mcannally said.
He also said that Mitchell-robinson was a “born executive” with a “tremendous zest for life.” She had worked for Signify and International Paper and had started with Sunshine Enterprise about four months before the plane crash.
Pelynio helped found Heli America, which Sunshine Enterprise purchased a controlling interest of in 2010. He became the company’s president of the Heli Americas’ forklift division.
Lawsuits claim wrongful death, negligence
Four lawsuits were filed against Wei Chen’s estate — managed by his wife, Zhaohui “Isabel” Xu — and several companies including Chen Aircrafts, his company that owned the plane, by the families of the John Chen, Pelynio and Mitchell-robinson. A suit filed by John Chen’s wife, Jiali Gu, alleges the plane was purchased in 2017 and an agreement was signed shortly after for Georgia-based Hill Aircraft and Leasing Corp. to perform or have a third-party perform inspections maintenance and repairs on the plane to ensure safety.
Hill, Eagle Aviation Inc., Duncan Aviation Inc. and Central Flying Service Inc. were believed to have inspected or done work on the plane between the purchase and the crash. All four were named in Gu’s suit.
In a separate lawsuit, Mitchell-robinson’s family said Wei Chen was “careless and/or negligent.” The suit said Wei Chen was “directly responsible” for operating the Cessna 560 aircraft and was responsible for determining if the plane was safe. Pelynio’s wife Laurie Pelynio filed two lawsuits alleging wrongful death and negligence and claimed the plane should not have been cleared to fly and that it was poorly maintained.
In a response to one of the lawsuits, Xu denied that her husband was responsible for the crash and that it was an accident.
All four lawsuits are pending. Commercial Appeal reporter Desiree Stennett contributed to this story.
Corinne Kennedy is a reporter for the Commercial Appeal. She can be reached via email at Corinne.kennedy@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @Corinneskennedy