LUZERNE COUNTY, PA. (THECOUNT) — A Geico Skytypers pilot was killed in a small plane crash shortly after takeoff Friday at an airport in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.
The T-6 Texan plane was part of the Skytypers team scheduled to perform Saturday at the Great Pocono Raceway Airshow near Avoca, according to flyingmag.
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The crash at the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport occurred around 12:35 p.m. The pilot, whose name was not released, was the only person on board, according to Jacob Schmitt, a supervisor at Luzerne County 911.
The plane was heading northbound when it suddenly veered to the left “for reasons unknown,” crashed into the grass and caught fire, airport director Carl Beardsley told the AP.
The cause of the crash is under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.
It is the second fatal crash involving the team in recent years. In 2018, Ken Johansen died in an accident shortly after takeoff from Republic Airport in Farmingdale, New York.
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geo quick facts: Luzerne County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 906 square miles, of which 890 square miles is land and 16 square miles is water. It is Northeastern Pennsylvania’s second-largest county by total area – Wikipedia.