Rentschler Field Crash | New England Aviation History

East Hartford, CT. – September 22, 1942

January 25, 2022

East Hartford, Connecticut – September 22, 1942

Curtis P-40 Aircraft
U. S. Army Air Corps Photo

On September 22, 1942, Staff Sergeant Raymond R. Kroskiewicz took off from Rentschler Field in East Hartford, for a training flight. He was piloting a Curtiss P-40F fighter plane, (Ser. No. 41-14178). Shortly after 3 P.M. he returned to the field, and as he was attempting to land his aircraft crashed and burned.

S/Sgt. Kroskiewicz was from Nanticoke, Pennsylvania.

https://www.fold3.com/memorial/83720094/raymond-r-kroskiewicz

https://www.honorstates.org/index.php?id=421093

Sources:

Book, “Fatal Army Air Forces Aviation Accidents In The United States, 1941-1945”, by Anthony J. Mireles, C. 2006.

www.fold3.com

www.honorstates.org

East Hartford, CT. – August 8, 1949

January 25, 2022

East Hartford, Connecticut – August 8, 1949

On August 8, 1949, a twin-motor Beechcraft airplane with a pilot and six passengers aboard was taking off from Rentschler Field in East Hartford, when it crashed and burned on takeoff. The plane had been bound for Monmouth Park Race Track in New Jersey.

All seven were transported to St. Francis Hospital in Hartford. One woman passed away from her injuries two hours later, and a second woman succumbed to her injuries the following day. The other five people were reported to be “improving”.

Sources:

The Evening Star, (Washington, D. C.), “Mrs. Clifford Strike Killed, Six Hurt In Plane Crash”, August 9, 1949, page A-3.

The Evening Star, “Death Of Woman Golfer Second After Plane Crash”, August 10, 1949, page A-6.