Four Connecticut residents, including a teenager taking flying lessons, were killed in a plane crash in Vermont over the weekend. The single-engine Piper aircraft departed from Windham Airport in Connecticut for a short flight to Ferrisburgh where the occupants stopped for brunch before heading back to Connecticut. Authorities were alerted when the plane failed to return, and using cellphone data, they were able to track down the wreckage in a wooded area near the Basin Airport in Vermont.
The victims of the crash were identified as Paul Pelletier, Frank Rodriguez, Susan Van Ness, and her daughter Delilah Van Ness. Delilah Van Ness was a sophomore at Middletown High School who was taking flight lessons with Pelletier, the school’s aviation technology teacher. The cause of the crash remains under investigation by the FAA and the National Transit Safety Board, and it is unclear who was piloting the aircraft at the time of the crash.
The community has been left devastated by the loss of these special individuals. Middletown Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Alberto Vázquez Matos expressed the profound impact the deaths of Paul, Delilah, and Susan have had on the district and the city. Middletown High School was closed to allow students and faculty to grieve, and counseling will be available to those who need it when they return to school.
First responders arrived at the scene of the crash in Vermont and pronounced all four occupants of the plane dead. The bodies of the victims were taken to the medical examiner’s office in Burlington, where autopsies will be conducted to determine the cause of death. The crash site was located in a wooded area east of the Basin Airport, and the FAA is investigating what may have caused the tragic accident.
The pilot of the aircraft did not send out any distress signals before the crash, and the relatives of those on board were the ones who reported the situation to the authorities. Using drone technology, Vermont state police and local agencies were able to locate the wreckage of the plane. It is a heartbreaking loss for the community, as these individuals were well-respected and loved by those who knew them.
The high school community of Middletown is coming together to support one another during this difficult time. Paul, Delilah, and Susan were highly regarded members of the school and city, and their absence is being keenly felt by all who knew them. The cause of the crash remains a mystery, and investigations are ongoing. The tragic event has left a void in the hearts of those who knew the victims, and the community is coming together to offer support and solace to those affected by the loss.
