History Lost

[sc7500]

2 People died when a PT-19 based at the Iowa Aviation Heritage Museum hit power lines NNW of Des Moines after an air show and crashed into a sand bar near the Des Moines river:

http://www.kcci.com/news/28857450/detail.html

http://iowaaviationheritagemuseum.webs.com/apps/photos/album?albumid=1114670

45885

[simonu]

Whilst the names of the poor fellows have not been released, I'd guess they were certainly the devoted craftsmen who spent many many hours of their lives restoring this peice of aviation history. A double tragedy. Not a thing to make thoughtless comments or bad jokes about aye Hern07!

[sc7500]

http://www.kcci.com/news/28857450/detail.html

WDM, Johnston Men Killed In Plane Crash

Officials release new information in a weekend plane crash in Dallas County on Saturday.Two people died when a WWII vintage airplane crashed near the Des Moines River.Upon impact, the plane broke apart on a sand bank in a remote area only reachable by boat or helicopter.

A witness at the scene said the plane may have hit some power lines and then nosedived into sand.The plane had been at an air show in Boone.Officials said Monday that pilot Timothy Griffith, of West Des Moines, and passenger, Kendall Belz, of Johnston, were killed in the crash.

Roger Pointer, president of the Iowa Aviation Heritage Museum, said Griffith was a retired brigadier general with the National Guard. An FAA spokesman told KCCI that Griffith was also a retired manager of the FAA's Flight Standards Office. The office handles everything from pilot licensing and certification to crash investigations.

Belz was a National Guard soldier and a museum volunteer, who got to ride in the plane for his volunteer work."It's their reward for volunteering and working, that's what they work for," said Pointer.

The plane was on loan to the museum from Josh Shultz, a Des Moines native, who inherited the plane from his grandfather."Had a lot of sentimental value. My dad remembers when he was a kid helping my grandfather restore the plane and it's been in our family since the early 50s," said Shultz.

Shultz said he encouraged the museum to share the plane with as many people as possible.Hours before the crash, Pointer said Griffith had given a plane ride to three World War II veterans in Boone.

"We tried to keep history alive, let the people feel and touch, find out what World War II was all about," said Pointer.FAA is investigating.