Family killed in crash had ties to soccer club, friends say

Friends have identified the South Florida family of three who were killed in a fiery plane crash in rural Virginia on Sunday.

They are Alfredo Díez Seoane, his wife, Kenya, and their 3-year-old son, Nicolas, according to UDJ Almeiras, a soccer club in Spain, where Díez Seoane is from.

“We want to remember him as what he was, a dreamer, an attentive person, kind and willing to help,” the club wrote in a Facebook post Monday.

The West Broward Freemasons Lodge #253, where Díez Seoane was a member, also confirmed his death in a Facebook post Monday.

“We are deeply saddened by the sudden passing of our Brother Alfredo Diez, wife, and son. His absence leaves a void in our lodge, but his memory will forever be part of our square and compasses,” the organization wrote.

Díez Seoane is originally from Betanzos, a town in northwestern Spain, according to his Facebook profile.

Díez Seoane owned Atlantis Aviation, a Pembroke Pines flight school, and Sky Jet Elite, a private jet charter company in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, according to his Facebook page.

The crash is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Aviation Administration and the Virginia State Police.

Peter Knudson, an NTSB spokesman, said the the twin engine Israel Aircraft Industries 1125 Westwind Astra took off from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

The state police have not confirmed the identities of the people on the plane, but said five people were killed: the pilot, co-pilot, and three passengers — a man, woman and young boy. The names of the pilot and co-pilot were not immediately available.

The jet went down around 3 p.m. as it approached Ingalls Field Airport in Hot Springs, a town located about 160 miles from Richmond, said Sgt. Richard Garletts, a Virginia State Police spokesman.

The passengers were supposed to attend an event at the Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, according to Garletts. Police received that information from the attorney of the plane’s owner, who is a family friend, Garletts said

The plane exploded upon impact, Garletts said, adding that there were no survivors.

“The plane was short on its approach to the runway, struck trees, then a hillside,” he told the Herald in an email Monday.