My blog posts ended abruptly in the summer of 2010. There's a reason for that. Up to that summer, my blog had been little more than a public pilot's log. I posted mostly about flying in my Piper Arrow - N2825A ("Aggie"). The blog was a good way for me to blow off steam and share (for whoever was reading - probably nobody) my flight experiences. The tragic events of July 14, 2010 changed all of that.
At approximately 9:05 p.m. Aggie went down in North Myrtle Beach, SC with a renter at the controls, and his wife and granddaughter in the plane. All three were killed. And as luck would have it, Aggie went down in a trailer park. The plane came to rest under a trailer - the post-crash fire consumed Aggie and took two trailers with her. At least one person on the ground sustained substantial injury.
Over the next few weeks I will write about the events of that night and the days that followed. For now let's just say that the events of that evening deeply affected my family for the subsequent three years. The NTSB determined that pilot error was solely to blame for the accident. That didn't keep me from getting sued. In fact, I was sued by 10 different plaintiffs. All of the litigation has settled - and my insurer took care of my defense. Since we are now beyond three years since the accident and the statute of limitations has run, I can now speak about my experiences.
I am still flying though I don't currently own a plane. I hope to change that situation this year. I will pick up writing about my flights this weekend. I will also probably add some writing about my recent journey to health and fitness, including my experiences joining a Masters swim team.
I think it may also be time for me to break my silence about politics. We'll see.
