A small plane that crash-landed on Martha’s Vineyard after flying from Westchester, New York, on Saturday, July 15, 2023. The pilot experienced a medical emergency, authorities said.
The pilot of a small plane that crashed, with a passenger at the controls, on Martha's Vineyard last weekend has died, authorities said Friday.
Randolph Bonnist, a 79-year-old from Norwalk, Connecticut, died at Boston Medical Center Thursday night, according to the Cape and Island District Attorney's Office. Authorities have previously said that the plane's pilot experienced a medical emergency and that the plane's passenger took over before the plane crashed at Martha's Vineyard Airport Saturday.
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The passenger was identified Friday as his wife, Robin Bonnist, who was not hurt. Foul play isn't suspected in the crash, prosecutors said.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating what happened, has yet to release a detailed preliminary report on the crash.
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Officials haven't shared the nature of the medical episode Bonnist experienced. Earlier this week, a Massachusetts State Police spokesman said the pilot, who suffered a medical emergency while flying the plane, remained in serious condition.
The Federal Aviation Administration previously confirmed two people were on board when the single-engine 2006 Piper Meridian crashed while landing at the airport in West Tisbury, Massachusetts, around 3:15 p.m. Saturday. The plane landed in a grassy area near the runway.
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State and local police initially said the pilot was having a medical episode upon approach, forcing his passenger to take over the controls. The plane had departed from Westchester, New York.
The woman attempted to land the aircraft, which resulted in a hard landing outside the runway, causing the aircraft's left wing to break in half, state police said. Local police described the incident as a the plane landing on its belly with no landing gear and said the pilot had to be extricated from the plane.
Both the pilot and passenger were taken to Martha's Vineyard Hospital, before the man was flown by medical helicopter to Boston for further treatment. The woman was not injured in the crash, state police said, but she was evaluated at the hospital and released.
