Purdue News
Purdue News
The victims:
The plane that crashed was a 1982 twin-engine Beechcraft Duchess, owned by Purdue and used for the training of students. A witness said the four-seat aircraft had been doing touch-and-go landings when it took off about 10:20 a.m., veered to the right and crashed about 100 feet from the runway, in a field that is part of airport property. It burst into flames on impact.
Although it hasn't been determined who was piloting the plane, both the students were experienced pilots. Both had private licenses and commercial certification, and they were working to obtain their multi-engine ratings, according to Jeanne V. Norberg, director of the Purdue News Service.
Swengel and Kinkade were among the 220 students in the university's flight training program. The program is offered by the Department of Aviation Technology, which has 600 students enrolled in its various programs. Graduates finish the program with a professional pilot's license.
All instruction in the department was canceled for the rest of the day Friday. Investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration were on the scene by 2 p.m., and officials from the National Transportation Safety Board were expected to take over the investigation when they arrived later in the day.
Swengel was the co-pilot on Purdue's team for the 1997 Air Race Classic held June 24-27. Purdue senior Jackie Battipaglia of New Windsor, N.Y., was the pilot. They were the youngest competitors in the all-woman field, and they placed 23rd out of 36 teams. Swengel was slated to be the pilot for Purdue's team in the 1998 race. Purdue won the 1996 race with Battipaglia serving as co-pilot.
In this year's race, competitors flew from Boise, Idaho, to Knoxville, Tenn., with stops along the way in Evanston, Wyo.; Jamestown, N.D.; Duluth, Minn.; Sault St. Marie, Mich.; Elkhart, Ind.; and Wheeling, W.Va.
The plane that crashed today was one of 25 in Purdue's fleet of training aircraft. Purdue in 1930 became the first university in the country to establish an airport and the first university to offer a flight training program for college credit.
The Aviation Technology Department was created in 1955, and since then students had flown 450,000 hours with no fatalities.
According to aviation technology Professor Mike Nolan, the university's flight training program averages between 50 and 75 student flights at the Purdue Airport each day. Training flights are scheduled Monday through Saturday.
The last fatal crash at Purdue was March 15, 1989, killing the pilot and co-pilot of Mid-Pacific Airlines' Flight 101. They were in route from Cleveland to Purdue, the cargo plane's home base, when the plane crashed about 200 yards from the runway.
Sources: Jeanne V. Norberg, director, Purdue News Service, (765) 494-2084;
e-mail, jeanne_norberg@purdue.edu
Joseph L. Bennett, vice president for university relations, (765) 494-2082;
e-mail, joe_bennett@purdue.edu
Writer: Frank Koontz, (765) 494-2080;e-mail, frank_koontz@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu
