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Authorities probe another plane crash

Published:Monday | September 19, 2011 | 12:00 AM
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The six-plane Trojan Horsemen Demonstration Flight Team begins their performance at the Thunder Over the Blue Ridge Open House and Air Show on Saturday during the 167th Airlift Wing in Martinsburg, West Virginia. One of the planes crashed and exploded six minutes into the performance. -AP photos
A single-engine T-28 from the six-plane Trojan Horsemen Demonstration Flight Team crashes and explodes during the performance.
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MARTINSBURG, West Virginia (AP):

The pilot of a post-World War II plane that crashed into a runway and exploded during a West Virginia air show was a passionate flyer and Air Force veteran who always put safety first, the man's son said yesterday.

John 'Flash' Mangan of Concord, North Carolina, was killed Saturday when the T-28 plane crashed and burst into flames as hundreds of horrified spectators looked on.

It came a day after a plane crashed during an air race in Reno, Nevada, killing the pilot and eight others and sending dozens to the hospital.

"He was a great pilot and a wonderful parent and husband," Sean Mangan, 27, said of his 54-year-old father.

13 years in air force

The elder Mangan graduated from the US Air Force Academy, served in the Air Force for 13 years and had been piloting planes more than three decades, Sean Mangan told The Associated Press. He had flown on the T-28 Warbird Aerobatic Formation Demonstration Team for five years.

Federal officials are investigating what caused Mangan's plane to crash. Spokesman Jim Peters of the Federal Aviation Administration said Sunday he expects the National Transportation Safety Board to release a preliminary accident report within three to five working days.

Thousands of people were watching from a distance but no one was injured when the aircraft wobbled and crashed Saturday, authorities said. Many in the crowd hugged each other and cried after seeing the aircraft appear to disintegrate in a fireball.

The rest of the air show, including yesterday's planned performances, were cancelled.