Isaac Seekell Aircraft Pilot Dies in Westerly State Airport Crash
Isaac Seekell, a 21-year-old aircraft pilot from Charlestown, died after the plane he was flying crashed near Westerly State Airport in Westerly, Rhode Island, on Monday, May 18. The FAA said a Cessna C172 went down in a field around 12:05 p.m. local time, and only the pilot was aboard.
First responders rushed Seekell to the hospital, where he died. Police identified him Tuesday, and the FAA said the aircraft was trying to land at Westerly State Airport shortly after noon when it was forced into an emergency landing in a field.
FAA and NTSB response
The FAA said, “A Cessna C172 crashed in a field near Westerly State Airport in Rhode Island around 12:05 p.m. local time on Monday, May 18. Only the pilot was on board,” and added, “The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate. The NTSB will lead the investigation and provide any updates.”
The NTSB was expected to arrive at the scene Tuesday morning. According to an FAA database, the single-engine plane was registered to a company in Wilmington, Delaware.
Seekell and Westerly field
Police identified the pilot as 21-year-old Isaac Seekell of Charlestown. The facts provided say he attended a local flight school.
Incidents at Westerly State Airport have been few and far between. The most notable prior incident there happened in 1999, when a pilot lost control and crashed beyond the runway, killing three people.
Neighbors near the airport
Nearby resident Jenny Fizzano told 10 News, “It's scary because we have four children, so we're always out and about in the woods right there,” while Alex Luzzi said, “There was a bunch of police cars and stuff, and we looked back and saw the plane,” and, “We went back in the woods because it's right over there behind our house. God forbit it would've happened even closer to someone's house, it could have been a lot worse.”
For people living near the airport, the crash put a rare local incident back in view as investigators take over the scene and work through what forced the aircraft into the field while it was trying to land.
