Ultralight Death – Updated
A 55-year-old Turlock man died Sunday after his ultralight plane folded in half and fell from the sky while he did stunts 800 feet above the New Jerusalem Airport southeast of Tracy.
The pilot was doing flips in the small plane shortly after 2:30 p.m. when one of its wings snapped, Mike Jefferson, a hang gliding instructor who witnessed the crash.
The man opened a parachute attached to the ultralight, but it got tangled in the plane’s tail, and the aircraft nosedived into the ground about 200 feet south of the runway, Jefferson said.
“As horrible as this is, at least I know he died doing what he loved,” said his daughter Hallie Erwin.
Erwin said her father left from the Turlock Airport Sunday afternoon and flew to the New Jerusalem Airport to join in a hang gliding clinic. He was performing acrobatics in his ultralight when one of the cables on the wing snapped. He deployed a parachute that was attached to the plane, but it got tangled up and the craft nose-dived into the ground, killing him instantly.
How sad, we flew by the group at New Jerusalem on Sunday did some touch and goes in our powered parachutes around 10am.
I knew the pilot for many years and he was a safe flyer, but things
happen and you have no control over some of them,b We were very
good friends, He flew powered parachutes for a while and got into
fixed wing aircraft.
To bad lost a good friend. John
So sorry John I know he was a good friend of yours. I only met him a few times he sure was a nice guy. To bad he did not stay with powered parachutes.
I’m sure the guys at Turlock will miss him.
Kieth was a great pilot & close friend,so sad to hear about this,kieth will be remembered & missed by many .we will keep flying just the way he would have wanted.So long for now brother till we meet again.
Doug Prather