2 Dallas-area men among 4 Americans killed when small plane crashes in Persian Gulf emirate
<span style="font-style: italic">By Staff and Wire Reports
Published 28 February 2011 11:54 AM</span>
Two Dallas-area men were among the four Americans killed Sunday when their turboprop aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff in the United Arab Emirates.
Landon Studer, owner and general manager of Addison-based Triple S Aviation, and Joshua Hucklebridge, the company’s international project manager, died in the crash, according to news reports from the Persian Gulf country and close friends of both men.
Mark Greer, a friend of both men for more than 15 years, remembered them as kind and caring individuals who were “having the time of their lives.”
“It’s such a shame,” said Greer, of Plano, who last spoke to the men on Friday. “They were special, special people.”
Another longtime friend, Shawn Mullican, described Studer as “extremely loyal and selfless” and Hucklebridge as “very giving of his time and emotions.”
Studer is survived by his wife and a 2-year-old son, and Hucklebridge had a girlfriend of three years, friends said.
Both Greer and Mullican said there is a strong community of supporters behind the families.
“They won’t go through this alone,” Mullican said.
The Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National identified the other two victims as Tyler Orsow, a pilot from California, and Charles Kimes, a pilot from Nevada.
Investigators were examining the wreckage to determine a possible cause for the fiery crash Sunday evening.
A statement by the U.S. Embassy to local media said the plane was en route to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on the first leg of a trip back to the U.S.
The twin-engine plane — apparently a vintage aircraft that had been modified — went down moments after taking off from Al Ain International Airport, about 60 miles east of Abu Dhabi. A statement by the UAE's Civil Aviation Authority said it crashed on the taxiway before catching fire.
The plane was reported to be a McKinnon Turbo Goose G21G, which is a version of an earlier Grumman G21 aircraft converted from piston engines to turboprops.
The company's website says it offers business aircraft, helicopters and special-use aircraft to the Middle East and South Asian markets.
<span style="font-style: italic">Staff writer Tom Benning and The Associated Press contributed to this report.</span>
<span style="font-style: italic">By Staff and Wire Reports
Published 28 February 2011 11:54 AM</span>
Two Dallas-area men were among the four Americans killed Sunday when their turboprop aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff in the United Arab Emirates.
Landon Studer, owner and general manager of Addison-based Triple S Aviation, and Joshua Hucklebridge, the company’s international project manager, died in the crash, according to news reports from the Persian Gulf country and close friends of both men.
Mark Greer, a friend of both men for more than 15 years, remembered them as kind and caring individuals who were “having the time of their lives.”
“It’s such a shame,” said Greer, of Plano, who last spoke to the men on Friday. “They were special, special people.”
Another longtime friend, Shawn Mullican, described Studer as “extremely loyal and selfless” and Hucklebridge as “very giving of his time and emotions.”
Studer is survived by his wife and a 2-year-old son, and Hucklebridge had a girlfriend of three years, friends said.
Both Greer and Mullican said there is a strong community of supporters behind the families.
“They won’t go through this alone,” Mullican said.
The Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National identified the other two victims as Tyler Orsow, a pilot from California, and Charles Kimes, a pilot from Nevada.
Investigators were examining the wreckage to determine a possible cause for the fiery crash Sunday evening.
A statement by the U.S. Embassy to local media said the plane was en route to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on the first leg of a trip back to the U.S.
The twin-engine plane — apparently a vintage aircraft that had been modified — went down moments after taking off from Al Ain International Airport, about 60 miles east of Abu Dhabi. A statement by the UAE's Civil Aviation Authority said it crashed on the taxiway before catching fire.
The plane was reported to be a McKinnon Turbo Goose G21G, which is a version of an earlier Grumman G21 aircraft converted from piston engines to turboprops.
The company's website says it offers business aircraft, helicopters and special-use aircraft to the Middle East and South Asian markets.
<span style="font-style: italic">Staff writer Tom Benning and The Associated Press contributed to this report.</span>
