A tragic incident occurred at Scottsdale Airport in Arizona when a small business jet collided with a parked plane, resulting in the death of the pilot and injuries to several individuals. The crash took place on Monday afternoon, just east of Phoenix.
The Learjet involved in the accident belonged to Mötley Crüe frontman Vince Neil, as confirmed by a representative for the singer. Although the jet had two pilots and two passengers, Neil himself was not among them, according to his attorney Worrick Robinson.
Robinson conveyed Neil’s condolences and gratitude towards all those affected by the incident, as well as the first responders who provided critical assistance during the unfortunate event.
A member of the Learjet’s flight crew died, according to a preliminary report from the Federal Aviation Administration, and three others on the jet were seriously hurt – a second member of the flight crew and two passengers.
Police in Scottsdale on Tuesday identified the man who died as 78-year-old pilot Joie Vitosky. “Our hearts go out to his family and friends at this time,” a statement from the department said.
“We will not release additional names of those involved until all notifications have been made,” Scottsdale police added.
Vitosky’s body has been removed from the Learjet and has been transported to the Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office, which will determine the cause of death, police spokesperson Allison Sempsis told CNN on Tuesday.
One person was on board the parked Gulfstream at the time of the crash, according to the Federal Aviation Administration and a spokesperson for Jet Pros, the private jet charter company that operates the plane.
“A member of our flight crew who was on board the Gulfstream at the time suffered injuries upon impact,” the spokesperson, Gus Toulatos, said in a statement to CNN on Tuesday. The man received medical treatment Monday night and was later released, according to Toulatos.
On Monday, officials had said four were hurt, but they clarified one person refused treatment.
Those injured were taken to hospitals, city spokesperson Kelli Kuester said.
“We are cooperating fully with airport authorities and relevant agencies as they conduct a thorough review of the situation,” Toulatos told CNN.
Neil’s girlfriend and her friend were on the arriving plane and were injured, Allen Kovac, a representative for Mötley Crüe, told CNN on Tuesday.
Monday’s crash is the fourth deadly US aircraft accident in the past two weeks, following a fatal midair collision near Washington, DC, that killed all 67 people onboard both aircraft, the crash of a medevac jet in Philadelphia, which killed seven, and a crash near Nome, Alaska, what claimed the lives of all 10 people on board a commuter flight.
Neil’s Learjet 35A – emblazoned with a maroon and gold paint scheme resembling flames – was arriving from Austin, Texas, when it veered off the runway and crashed into a parked Gulfstream G200, Kuester said at a Monday news conference.
“It appears that the left main gear failed upon landing resulting in the accident,” she said.
A Learjet can be purchased on the used market for about $1 million, but maintenance costs get higher over time, according to CNN aviation correspondent Pete Muntean.
The National Transportation Safety Board is at the scene and leading the investigation into the crash, said Kuester. In response to a CNN inquiry, the NTSB said only that it is investigating.
Scottsdale Airport is a popular aviation hub for private jets coming into and out of the Phoenix area, especially during major events like last weekend’s Waste Management Phoenix Open golf tournament, which brands itself as the largest zero-waste sporting event in the world.
The FAA briefly paused flights into the single-runway airport after the crash, but the runway reopened late Monday, the airport said.
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