Westfield, Massachusetts – July 10, 1983
On the afternoon of July 10, 1983, a 34-year-old pilot from Somers, Connecticut, took off from Westfield – Barnes Regional Airport in a Bede BD-5B aircraft, (reg. no. N83SK), for the purpose of a test flight. The pilot had built the plane himself from a kit over the previous two years. After circling the area, the pilot was seen making a landing approach from the west towards Runway 33. There was a strong breeze blowing at the time causing erratic air currents, and shortly before touchdown, one of the aircraft’s wings clipped a treetop on a 50-foot bluff near the end of the runway causing the plane to crash into a ravine, killing the pilot.
Sources:
Springfield Morning Union, “Pilot Killed in Crash”, July 11, 1983, page 1.
Westfield Evening News, “FAA Probing Fatal Plane Crash”, July 11, 1983, page 1.
