MANSFIELD, MASS. (WHDH) - A flight instructor and student were killed when a single-engine plane crashed and caught fire at Mansfield Municipal Airport on Saturday, officials said.
Troopers responding to a reported incident at the airport about 12:30 p.m. found a small aircraft that had crashed and two people suffering from life-threatening injuries, according to Massachusetts State Police spokesman David Procopio.
The family of Sydney Miti, the 31-year-old flight instructor, held a memorial service in Waltham on Sunday to honor the instructor, husband, and father.
Miti’s uncle, who is also his pastor, is still trying to wrap his head around the news.
“Yesterday, we got the shock of our lives,” Henry Ssuuna said. “It was so hard to accept.”
Police say Miti and his 18-year-old flight student took off from Norwood Memorial Airport just before 11:30 a.m. on Saturday and their single-engine plane crashed just off the runway in Mansfield one hour later.
Miti and the student were both killed.
Police said radio transmissions indicated a missed approach to the runway before the plane crashed into a turf landing area.
The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration are assisting Mansfield police and state police with an investigation.
“This will be a lengthy investigation,” Mansfield Deputy Chief Michael Ellsworth said. “A lot of moving parts and a lot of professionals need to look at a lot of different things on that aircraft.”
Family members said Miti was inspired to become a pilot by his wife’s father, who was a pilot in their native Uganda. They had just returned from a from a trip to see family there and Miti was set to start teaching his nephew to fly in a few weeks.
“We were just proud of him,” Ssuuna said. “I was teasing him a few days ago that very soon I’ll be buying a private jet and [Miti will] be the one flying it. He was supposed to be here today.”
Now, Miti’s family is focused on taking care of Miti’s wife, mother, and two-year-old son.
“We know he loved the lord, he’s in a better place,” Ssuuna said. “We just have to accept it and accept the responsibilities of taking care of our loved ones.”
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