Student Pilot Killed in Crash Identified
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IRVINE — Authorities on Wednesday identified David Heller, 49, of Laguna Hills, as the pilot who died instantly Tuesday when his plane flipped on approach to John Wayne Airport.
Heller, vice president of a credit company in Cerritos, had only about six weeks of instruction left to obtain his license and was flying solo when his rented Cessna 152 crashed.
An investigator from the National Transportation Safety Board has said the plane’s drop to the ground was similar to accidents caused by wake turbulence from a larger plane. A Boeing 757 jet landed a few minutes earlier on a parallel runway.
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