Friends are remembering a South Florida family that was killed when the private jet they were on crashed in Virginia over the weekend.
Alfredo Diez, his wife Ksenia, and their young son were on the jet with two other people when it crashed into a wooded area near the Ingalls Field Airport in Hot Springs, Virginia, around 3 p.m. Sunday.
An NBC6 source who knew the family identified the pilots killed in the crash as Claudio Colmenares and Gagan Reddy. Both were from South Florida.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Diez was a flight instructor and the CEO of Atlantis Aviation and Atlantis Flight Academy based in Pembroke Pines.
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Diez was also a part of the South Florida Aviators Fly-In and Educational Expo, known as Safee Flight, an organization focused on aviation education.
"Alfredo was a loving, caring and special person. His family was awesome; we loved his beautiful wife, Ksenia and his handsome son," Vivian Roberts, executive coordinator of SAFEE Flight, said in a statement. "Alfredo loved being a part of the Operation Safee Flight Family and we loved having him being a part. He will truly be missed. Please continue to pray for the families and friends that were affected by this great loss."
Local
Authorities said there were five people on board the twin-engine IAI Astra 1125, including the pilot, first officer and three passengers, which had left Fort Lauderdale International Airport and was headed to the airport in Hot Springs.
The plane was on an approach about 1/10th of a mile from the runway when it went down, National Transportation Safety Board officials said.
Just before landing, the plane struck a tree and then a hillside before it became fully engulfed in flames, officials said.
The NTSB and Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the cause of the crash.
