Thu, Jul 08, 2004
Pilot Killed
Ross K. Anderson of Rancho Palos
Verdes (CA) spent years building his Harmon Rocket II. He finished
it last year and registered it with the FAA, then flew it to his
office in Chino almost every day. Wednesday, he flew it to his
death.
"It was his project and he was really proud of it. Every rivet
was a piece of art," said his friend, Frank Lyon.
Anderson was reportedly the only person on board the aircraft
when it crashed into two houses in Seal Beach (CA). Residents
Sharon and Donn Loe were in one of the homes when the aircraft
crashed and exploded.
"I just heard like a crash noise, a bomb," 67-year old Sharon
Loe told KCAL-TV after leaving the hospital. She had a minor cut
and her hair was singed. "And when I looked up, saw this fire bomb
or ball coming at me and I thought to myself get out of here. I
thought I was on fire."
Donn Loe wasn't hurt.
The aircraft had taken off from Torrance on its way to Chino at
about 0800 local. Fifteen minutes later, ATC lost contact with
Anderson. Not long after that, the aircraft went down in the Orange
County neighborhood.
"He typically would fly his airplane to work because it beats
all the freeway traffic," Lyon said. "He was such a careful person,
and he wouldn't fly if there was any expected unsafe conditions. So
I just don't know what could have happened."
Anderson held an ATP rating, according to local news reports. He
was a former Navy pilot who has worked at several different
companies in Southern California in recent years.
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