By Our Reporter
A sombre mood has settled over Middletown High School following the tragic death of an aviation technology teacher and a student in a plane crash in Vermont.
Paul Pelletier, 55, and 15-year-old Delilah Van Ness, who was receiving flying lessons, perished along with Delilah’s mother, 51-year-old Susan Van Ness, and one other passenger.
In response to the tragedy, the school confirmed its closure on Tuesday, September 10, to allow time for counselling for students and staff, according to NBC Boston.
“This unimaginable loss has left a void in our hearts and our community. Paul, Delilah, and Susan were special individuals whose absence is already being felt throughout our district and city,” said the school superintendent.
WCAX News added that the Federal Aviation Administration indicated Pelletier’s medical certificate had expired, and he was not authorised to fly as of September 1.
The four-seat, single-engine Piper aircraft had departed Windham Airport in Connecticut on Sunday, September 8, for a two-hour flight to Basin Harbour Airport in Ferrisburgh, Vermont.
After landing and visiting a restaurant, the plane did not return to Connecticut despite being seen departing from Vermont.
According to police, there were no initial reports of distress or a plane crash until relatives alerted authorities after the aircraft failed to return to Connecticut as scheduled.
With the help of a police drone, investigators located the wreckage around 12.20am on Monday, September 9, in a wooded area east of Basin Harbor Airport. First responders confirmed the deaths of all four occupants.
State police reported that the bodies have been transported to the medical examiner’s office in Burlington for postmortem examination.
In other news, a Russian Mi-8T helicopter with 22 people onboard went missing shortly after taking off.
The plane carrying mostly tourists to the Nikolaevka village departed from a base near the Vachkazhets volcano in Kamchatka.
Authorities said the crew did not complain before and after departure. All those onboard were confirmed dead after the plane was located.
