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A Virginia man was flying the small plane that crashed upon takeoff at Long Island MacArthur Airport on Monday, killing the pilot and his sole passenger, who was also from Virginia, police said on Tuesday.
Christopher Kucera, 46, of Fredericksburg, Virginia, was the pilot of single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza A36 that took off from Runway 6 at the Ronkonkoma airport before immediately appearing to attempt to return the runway and crashing, authorities said. The passenger killed in the wreck was Zachary Hatcher, 43, of King George, Virginia.
Both men were pronounced dead at the scene. Their bodies were taken to the Suffolk County medical examiner’s office for positive identification.
Kucera’s family told CBS New York the victims were life partners who were visiting friends on Long Island. Additionally, the family said Kucera was a highly experienced pilot.
Kucera, an air and space engineer, developed all the necessary skills for a pilot’s license before he was 17 years old, his brother Mike, who lives in Richmond, Virginia, told the Fredricksburg Free Press.
“We’re devastated,” Mike Kucera said. “Chris loved that plane, and he loved Zach.”
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash. The wreckage of the plane remains at the airport.
Photos of wreckage taken on Tuesday, July 23, at 1:44 p.m. (GLI Photo/Nicholas Esposito)
Top images: Christopher Kucera (X, formerly Twitter) and Zachary Hatcher (fredericksburgva.com).
