Another training aircraft crashes in Florida

Everglades plains, southern Florida, US, witnessed yet another crash involving a training aircraft this Sunday. Fortunately both the instructor and the student escaped unhurt this time, unlike the previous two crashes which killed two students from India.

The UPI report of Sunday’s crash:

No injuries in Florida plane crash
MIAMI, Jan. 6 (UPI) — Rescuers in southern Florida confirmed the two people on board a small plane that crash-landed in the Everglades Sunday escaped uninjured.Miami-Dade County Fire Rescue told The Miami Herald that by the time paramedics arrived at the crash scene, the plane’s two passengers were walking away from the plane.
The unidentified passengers did not appear to be injured and were immediately taken to nearby Tamiami Airport. A Miami-Dade Aviation spokesman told the newspaper the Cherokee Piper 28 was reported to have gone down eight miles from the airport Sunday morning. WTVJ-TV in Miami reported the two pilots were on training mission when the plane’s engine suddenly failed, forcing them to make an emergency landing in the Everglades.The cause for the engine failure will be investigated, police said.

Though this report and all the other reports in other publications do not mention the flying school’s name, (or the intstructor’s and students’ identity, for that matter) the N number of the plane – N109ND – crept in to CBS 4 .com report gives it away. A search in FAA data base tells the owner of the fixed wing single engine Piper PA-28-161 built in 1990 is Silver Express, South Florida’s well known flight training academy for over 20 years.
According to the schools website, they do have a strong presence in India and Apace Aviation Consultants is their local representative.
The fatal crashes on October 26 and December 6 too were at Everglades and in both accidents the pilot school involved was Kemper Aviation, Florida. Kemper too recruit pilot students regularly from India.

Apace denies links
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Here is a rejoinder send in by Rahul Chowdhury of Apace Aviation Consultants on 16 September, 2008:

Dear Sir,
At the end of the said article, “According to the schools website, they do have a strong presence in India and Apace Aviation Consultants is their local representative”.
We wish to bring to your knowledge that during the end of 2007, we had ceased to do business with the said school. We had only sent one student who has recently returned without being involved in any incident. For your information, the said flight school did not remove our name and logo formtheir website and as per our information, ANGEL PILOT TRAINING SCHOOL, India had already been appointed as their new representatives.
The above may be verified at your end and the only student who under went the training without any incident was Ms. M. Koonaris. You may please verify and delete the paragraph as it will tarnish our image.
Thank You

Regards

Rahul Chowdhury
Apace Aviation Consultants
India