The propeller of a plane carrying Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle and his flight instructor was working as it slammed into a New York City highrise, suggesting the aircraft had not lost power before impact, according to preliminary investigations.
Debbie Hersman of the National Transportation Safety Board, said Thursday that investigators have recovered most of the wreckage of the airplane that crashed Wednesday killing Lidle and flight instructor Tyler Stanger, including the nose, tail and both wings.
She said there was "strong evidence" that the propeller was "turning at the time of impact."
Flight instructor Tyler Stanger, who died in the crash in New York on Wednesday, poses next to his plane at Brackett Field Airpot in LaVerne, Calif., in the spring of 2004. It's not yet known who was flying at the time of the tragedy.
(David Prado/Associated Press)
But Hersman said investigators still do not know who was flying the plane when it crashed.
No flight recorder to help probe
Investigators will have to determine the cause of the crash without the benefit of a flight data recorder, Hersman said earlier.
Parts from the plane lie strewn on the ground outside a New York highrise Thursday as investigators continue to work.
(Bebeto Mattews/Associated Press)
Under U.S. aviation rules, the type of plane involved in the crash was not required to have a recorder.
Investigators will look at the time of the crash, possible medical issues affecting the pilot including fatigue, maintenance records, air traffic control records, any structural issues with the airplane, and weather to determine the cause, Hersman said.
The crash left debris, including aircraft parts, headsets and the pilot's log book, all over the street. It injured 21 people, mostly firefighters, who were treated in hospital.
Hersman told reporters late Wednesday that no mayday call had been issued by the single-engine plane, which crashed about 2:45 p.m. ET, and no flight plan had been filed.
Smashed into luxury condo
The plane smashed into the 40-storey luxury condominium building in Manhattan's affluent Upper East Side, sending black smoke and flames billowing from the 30th and 31st floors and sparking fears of a repeat of the Sept. 11, 2001, al-Qaeda attacks.
Lidle, who was working toward getting his pilot's licence, reportedly had logged about 88 hours of flying time; during 47 hours of that time, he was considered to be the pilot in command of the aircraft.
Baseball fans were in shock. Lidle, a nine-year veteran who played with several teams, including the Toronto Blue Jays, had been acquired by the Yankees in July. He leaves behind a wife and six-year-old son.
Baseball mourns Lidle's death
"This is a terrible and shocking tragedy that has stunned the entire Yankees organization," Yankees owner George Steinbrenner said in a statement Wednesday.
Steinbrenner extended sympathies to Lidle's wife and son.
Federal Aviation Administration records showed the plane was registered to the ballplayer.
It left New Jersey's Teterboro Airport at about 2:30 p.m. ET and was airborne for about 15 minutes before it crashed.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Lidle and his flying instructor were believed to be sightseeing and on a route that was to take them over the Statue of Liberty, the Brooklyn Bridge and the Empire State Building.
With files from the Associated Press
