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LINCOLN PARK - Couple dies in crash
LINCOLN PARK - A borough couple was killed when their airplane crashed off the coast of Maine on Sunday, June 15
Investigators are collecting information to determine the cause of the accident in which Edward and Mary Ann Mainardi, both 72, were killed.
“The investigation is still in the preliminary stages,” Luke Schiada, senior air safety investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), said. “We’re trying to gather as many facts as we can without drawing any conclusions.”
After all of the facts of the accident are compiled, it will take between six and nine months for a cause to be determined, Schiada said.
Investigators are looking into several facets of the accident, including the experience and medical history of the pilot (Edward), the aircraft (a Cessna 337 Skymaster), and radar and communication information.
“We’re in the information-gathering mode,” Schiada said.
On Tuesday, the investigator said that the aircraft had not yet been recovered, but he did expect to have maintenance records shortly so he would be able to look at the craft’s airworthiness.
After departing from Millinocket Airport in Maine with Caldwell Airport as their destination, the Mainardis issued their last communication at 1:08 p.m., Schiada said. There were no distress calls, he said.
Brunswick Navy Air Station in Brunswick, Maine notified Coast Guard Sector Northern New England that they had lost communications and radar contact with the couple’s plane at 1:30 p.m.
The plane crashed about 20 miles east of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, Schiada said.
A Coast Guard boat crew recovered the bodies of the husband and wife at 4:17 p.m. and turned them over to Portland Fire Department.
After all of the facts of the accident are gathered, the findings will be sent to the NTSB in Washington, DC, which will review the material and determine a cause.
Patrick English, the Mainardis’ neighbor for 17 years, called Edward and Mary Ann “very active people.”
“They had a regimen when they would walk every day to keep fit,” English said. “And they traveled quite a bit.
“They were good neighbors,” English added.
As of Tuesday morning, no arrangements had been made at local funeral homes.
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