A shocking plane crash was watched by thousands of spectators at the Reno Air Races on September 18. The pilot of the plane was killed.
The tragedy was announced by the Reno Air Racing Association.
The pilot was identified as Aaron Hogue, a 61-year-old man who won the race’s Rookie of the Year award in 2021.
At a news conference, Fred Telling, the CEO of the Association, said that Hogue was alone in the plane. The Association also confirmed the pilot’s death in a tweet sent out via their Twitter account. In the tweet, the association sent condolences to the pilot’s loved ones, confirmed that Hogue was the sole victim, that all other pilots had landed safely, and the races had been suspended.
A video that appeared on social media showed two planes racing across the Reno Mountains in Nevada and then one of them going down and crashing in a field. The pilot was in an Aero Vodochody L-29 aircraft, which burst into a fireball as it skidded across the field. Thousands of people at the event watched in horror, and others watched via Livestream.
Telling said that the tragedy occurred on the third lap out of six on the fifth outer pylon during what is known as the Jet Gold Race.
Fans of the late pilot, Aaron Hogue, expressed their condolences and tributes on Facebook following the crash.
In 2011, The National Championship Air Races experienced an even more horrifying, catastrophic event when a plane lost control and smashed into spectators, killing 11 people and leaving more than 60 injured. The fatal incident threatened to end the races, but they resumed the following year after event organizers said they had made all the safety improvements recommended by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Aaron Hogue’s profile on the Racing Jets website describes him as the ultimate flying enthusiast. As a child, he made a plastic L-29 scale model. He was a former Navy electronics technician and a private IFR pilot with over 2,300 hours experience flying several aircrafts. He also earned a certificate in aerobatics from the Shawn Tuckers Tutima Academy.
The Federal Aviation Administration said it would be conducting an investigation to determine the cause of the plane crash, in cooperation with the National Transportation Safety Board.
The National Championship Air Races have been occurring for over 50 years and are the fastest motorsport in the world. They feature seven different racing classes, Formula 1, Jet Racing, T6 Class, Unlimited, Biplane, Sport, and STOL Drag. The annual event is held every September at the Reno-Stead Airport and features military airplane displays.