4 people, including teen girl taking flying lessons, killed in New England plane crash, police say

FERRISBURGH, Vt. — A teenage girl taking flying lessons, her high school aviation instructor, her mother, and an elderly man were all on a private plane that crashed after flying from Middletown, Connecticut, to Ferrisburgh, Vermont, for brunch on Sunday, law enforcement and school officials said Monday.

A four-seat, single-engine Piper aircraft departed Windham Airport for a flight of about two hours to Basin Harbor Airport around 8:30 a.m. for a brunch reservation at Basin Harbor, according to Vermont State Police.

Delilah Van Ness, 15, and her mother, 51-year-old Susan Van Ness, both of Middletown, 55-year-old Paul Pelletier, of Columbia, and 88-year-old Frank Rodriquez, of Lebanon, left their brunch outing shortly after noon and were expected to fly back to Connecticut on the plane, Middletown police and Vermont State Police said.

A witness reported seeing the airplane on the runway at about 12:15 p.m. but never saw it take off. When the plane failed to return to Connecticut as expected, relatives of the occupants reported the situation to the Connecticut State Police and the Middletown Police Department, according to Vermont officials.

“No reports were received indicating an aircraft in distress or that a plane had crashed,” Vermont State Police noted in a news release.

The Federal Aviation Administration then used cellphone location data to determine the plane’s last known location was near the airstrip in Vermont. Middletown police then notified the Vermont State Police of the situation at about 10:20 p.m. Sunday, prompting a large emergency search of the area around the airstrip.

Video shows wreckage of Vermont plane crash that left 4 people dead

With the assistance of a drone flown by Middlebury police, state police said investigators located the wreckage of the aircraft at about 12:20 a.m. Monday in a wooded area to the east of the Basin Harbor Airport.

All four people on the plane were pronounced dead at the scene of the crash. The bodies of the victims were brought to the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Burlington for autopsies to determine the cause and manner of death.

Officials noted that Delilah Van Ness was a sophomore student at Middletown High School and a student of Pelletier, an aerospace and manufacturing teacher at the same school.

“This unimaginable loss has left a void in our hearts and our community,” said Dr. Alberto Vázquez Matos, Superintendent of Middletown Public Schools. “Paul, Delilah, and Susan were special individuals whose absence is already being felt throughout our district and city.”

Matos said the high school will be closed Tuesday and fall athletic events will be rescheduled in the wake of the crash. Crisis teams and support staff will also be made available during normal school hours.

The Middletown Police Department added, “Our sincerest condolences go out to the family, friends, and students who were affected by this tragedy.”

Frank Rodriquez’s relation to the other three victims wasn’t immediately clear.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are leading an investigation into the cause of the crash.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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