Connecticut River – July 12, 1996

Hartford-Brainard Airport

     At about 11:15 a.m., on July 12, 1996, a single-engine Piper Malibu with six people aboard took off from Hartford-Brainard Airport bound for Block Island, Rhode Island.  Five of the six  were members of the same family, the pilot was not related.  

    Just after take off the plane began to loose altitude as it passed over the nearby Connecticut River.  Two fishermen in a boat watched as the Piper as it dropped lower and lower.  One later remarked to reporters that at first he thought the pilot was going to buzz the river just before one wing caught the water and the plane dove in roughly 100 yards away from them.   

     The fishermen immediately went the assist any survivors, and were quickly joined by another boat.  Together they plucked two children and two adults from the water.  Two women were given floatation devices and kept afloat until fire department rescue boats arrived.  Although badly shaken from the ordeal, all six persons survived.

      Sources:    

     New York Times, “Fishermen Save 6 After Crash Of Small Plane”, July 13, 1996