WASHINGTON — Authorities have released the names of six people, including three teenagers, who were killed after a twin-engine aircraft crashed while attempting to land at Shannon Airport in Fredericksburg, Virginia, according to Virginia State Police.
The victims have been identified by police as the following:
- William C. Hamerstadt, 64, of Carmel, Indiana (pilot)
- Robert D. Ross, 73, of Louisville, Kentucky (owner of the plane)
- Lisa K. Borinstein, 52, of Shelbyville, Indiana
- Luke J. Borinstein, 19, of Shelbyville, Indiana
- Emma R. Borinstein, 15, of Shelbyville, Indiana
- Maren Timmermann, 15, of Berlin, Germany
Lisa Borinstein was the mother of Luke and Emma Borinstein; Emma Borinstein and Maren Timmermann attended the same high school, according to school officials in Indiana.
The crash happened around 12:30 p.m. Friday; NTSB and the FAA said the 1969 Beech 95-B55 twin-engine, fixed-wing aircraft touched down midway on the runway and then “executed a go-around.”
As the airplane attempted to turn around and climb, authorities say, it appeared to stall as it made it beyond the railroad tracks at the end of the airport property, according to a news release.
As it reached the end of the airport, the plane banked left and crashed into the trees, immediately catching on fire, according to police.
The plane had left from Louisville, Kentucky, on Friday morning, stopping in Shelbyville, Indiana, before continuing onto Virginia, police said.
Virginia State Police were assisted at the crash site by the Spotsylvania County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Management, the Spotsylvania Volunteer Fire Department, the Chancellor Volunteer Fire Department, the National Park Service, and the Virginia Department of Emergency Management.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation by Virginia State Police, the NTSB and the FAA.
Joseph Borinstein, the grandfather of Emma and Luke Borinstein, told The Associated Press the family had chartered the plane to fly to Virginia, where his eldest grandson Drew is a senior at Virginia Military Institute. Emma’s twin brother stayed at home in Shelbyville, Indiana, because he had football and basketball practice, he said.
“It’s a sad thing, and we’re just absolutely overwhelmed by this loss. It’s unreal. Hard to express yourself,” he said.
The children’s father died last year. Joseph Borinstein said his daughter-in-law was a “wonderful lady” who worked as a registered nurse. He said his grandson Luke Borinstein had just completed his first year at Wabash College, an all-male liberal arts college in Indiana, and was interested in medicine. The school said on its website Saturday that he had just returned from a two-week immersion trip to Lima, Peru, and had spent the first part of his summer working in a biology professor’s lab.
WTOP’s Tiffany Arnold and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
