It was a routine flying day at Zamperini Subject in Torrance for Douglas Happ, an 81-year-old retired pilot and Vietnam veteran.
He was doing “touch-and-gos” in his single-engine Arion Lightning along with his pal Gregg Low, 59, with whom he was contemplating shopping for a aircraft. The duo flew for 18 minutes Wednesday, circling the airport, touchdown and taking off once more with out stopping.
Then, on their fourth strategy of the day to the airport, the pair crashed just off the runway round 11 a.m. Each had been killed.
“They had been coming in for a touchdown. We don’t know what occurred but however speculations are a wind pocket or one thing despatched them nose-down earlier than the runway,” mentioned Happ’s son, Ryan Happ, in an interview with The Occasions. “My dad was at all times practising these touch-and-gos. He’s carried out quite a lot of them. We’re questioning if he was on the controls or Gregg was.”
The Torrance Police and…
