posted Oct 5th, 2005 - The Florida Skydiving League had just completed its last meet of the 2005 season at Skydive DeLand, with two teams completing the last rounds of the meet on Sunday, before disaster struck the professional skydiving center once again this year. Skydive DeLand's Pilatus Porter crashed on Monday.

The NSL News leaves the sad news for the local newspaper, the Daytona Beach News Journal. The first story was posted on Tuesday, the day after the accident. The News Journal followed up with another story today, which offers the perspective of Bob Hallett, owner of Skydive DeLand.

Skydive DeLand owner optimistic despite year of problems

By Christine Girardin - News Journal staff writer

DELAND -- Despite a thunderstorm of hassles booming inside his office and the afternoon downpour raging outside, Skydive DeLand owner Bob Hallett was still prepared for sky divers the day after a jump plane crashed with 11 people onboard. In 23 years of doing business in DeLand, 2005 has been one of the toughest for Hallett. Monday's crash, which seriously injured DeLand pilot Shannon Lane, 37, follows fatal accidents in April and January.

Czech sky diver Jan Kadic, 28, had tried to maneuver too close to the ground in January and his parachute did not "square off" in time, police said. In April, Albert "Gus" Wing, 50, collided mid-air with the same Skydive DeLand plane he had jumped out of moments before. Wing's death remains under investigation, and a criminal complaint by the DeLand Police Department has been filed with the State Attorney's Office, spokeswoman Linda Pruitt said Tuesday. She would not reveal any details about the complaint.

Hallett said he's keeping a chin up. "In the last few months, I've had the most devastating experiences," said Hallett, who said Skydive DeLand will survive mostly thanks to the loyalty of skydivers. "They're not gonna let a blemish like this on my record stand in the way of what these 23 years have accomplished."

The DeLand Municipal Airport runway remained closed Tuesday while investigators examined the crumpled single-engine Pilatus Porter. It is expected to re-open this afternoon, said Nick Landgraff, airport manager. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating Monday's crash, but no information on its potential cause was available Tuesday, an FAA spokeswoman said.

The plane stalled and crashed shortly after takeoff, failing to get more than 50 to 75 feet off the ground, witnesses reported. "Looks like there's some pretty serious damage to the aircraft," said the unnamed man who dialed 911 to report the crash.

Colleen Kincaid said she watched the plane come down as quickly as it went up. She's spent 10 years getting to know sky divers and pilots while managing the Airport Restaurant and Gin Mill. "Once you do it, it's in their blood," said Kincaid, adding she believes the sky divers will keep coming. "It's like an addiction to them."

Lane suffered serious injuries and was taken by helicopter to Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach. He remained in serious, but stable condition Tuesday, said Kate Holcomb, spokeswoman. Lane went to work for Skydive DeLand within the last year, and is an experienced jump pilot, Hallett said.

Also on board the craft were 10 skydivers from DeLand, Daytona, Denmark, Brazil and Spain. But none were from Argentina, as initially reported by the DeLand Police Department. Ambulances took seven of the sky divers to area hospitals to treat neck, back and leg injuries.

Hallett said sky divers were making jumps Tuesday from other aircraft since he's lost the Pilatus Porter. "It's a million-dollar aircraft that is virtually destroyed," Hallett said.

christine.girardin@news-jrnl.com

Following is the story that was posted by the News Journal the day after the accident.

Plane crash injures sky divers

By Christine Girardin - News Journal staff writer

DELAND -- A single-engine plane carrying 10 sky divers didn't get more than 50 to 100 feet into the air on takeoff Monday before crashing at DeLand Municipal Airport, seriously injuring the pilot. The Skydive DeLand pilot flying the company's fixed-wing, turboprop plane was critically injured and airlifted to Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach. Of the 10 sky divers onboard, seven were taken to area hospitals with complaints of neck, back and leg injuries, said Cmdr. Randel Henderson, DeLand Police Department spokesman.

The pilot and passengers weren't identified Monday, but Henderson said the 10 people hoping to parachute from the airplane belong to a sky diving team from Argentina. Skydive DeLand has been in business more than 25 years and attracts sky divers from around the world.

The airplane wasn't far into its takeoff when it stalled, banked and crashed into the grass about 3 p.m. The plane did not catch fire on impact, although it was hosed down by firefighters as a precaution, said Henderson. A Skydive DeLand employee who didn't want to be identified said he watched the plane crash after takeoff. The plane, a Pilatus PC-6/B2-H2, was about 70 feet in the air when the nose pitched too far skyward then stalled, he said. "It hit the ground with a helluva impact," he said.

Airplane traffic was re-routed to other area airports following the crash, said Nick Landgraff, airport manager. The plane crash comes four months after a sky diver was killed when he collided mid-air with the Skydive DeLand plane he had jumped from moments before. Although Albert "Gus" Wing, 50, survived the April 24 accident long enough to make it to the hospital, his legs were severed at the knees and he died later that day. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating Monday's crash, Henderson said.

christine.girardin@news-jrnl.com