Craziness!! NY pitcher in plane crash

[Angiekay]

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle was the sole person aboard the plane that crashed Wednesday into a high-rise apartment building in New York, FBI officials told CNN.

Emergency responders found his passport in the street below, the officials said.

The small airplane was a Cirrus SR-20 registered to Lidle, 34, said Yankees manager Joe Torre.(Watch witness accounts of cascading fireballs and a plane split in half -- 1:58 )

There was a mayday, FAA reports, from the pilot involving a problem with fuel before the aircraft crashed into the 50-story high-rise on Manhattan's East Side.

One other person was reportedly killed, according to the New York City Fire Department and New York City Police Department.

Flames shot out from several windows midway up the luxury high-rise in a residential neighborhood. Paramedics and rescue workers are treating people on the ground.

The Federal Aviation Administration described the plane as a "general aviation" fixed-wing aircraft flying under visual flight rules, meaning a pilot was flying by visual landmarks. (Watch the orange flames ravage the apartment -- 1:50)

The plane hit the Belaire Condominiums at 524 E. 72nd Street near the East River. More than 150 firefighters are on scene of a four-alarm fire in the building.

Immediately after the crash NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) said it had put fighter aircraft into the air over numerous U.S. cities, though they said they had no reason to believe the event in New York was anything more than an accident, sources told CNN's Barbara Starr. NORAD did the same thing after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

NORAD Admiral Timothy Keating told CNN within an hour after the crash that the agency believed terrorism was not involved.

Steve Coleman, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs New York area airports said he had "no idea where [the plane] came from."

"We haven't heard from any of our facilities that anything's missing," said Coleman.

New York City government source told CNN there are "no indications of terrorism."

The FAA placed a one-mile flight restriction around the site of the crash, but New York area airports were not affected.

A senior U.S. official in Washington said the administration was waiting for more information.

Witness Henry Neimark, who is also a pilot, said he saw a plane flying at relatively low altitude which seemed to come from LaGuardia International Airport.

"It looked to me in retrospect that this was a pilot desperately trying to get back to the airport and land safely on a runway," he said.

"The fire was raging out of two windows," witness Sarah Steiner told CNN. "It looks like the plane just flew into someone's living room."

Steiner said fires were burning on the ground. "It looks like the plane just flew into someone's living room there."

"It looks as if the aircraft didn't go into the building but fell down," she said. "It may be part of the debris burning on the ground."

Video from the scene shows at least three apartments in the high-rise engulfed in flames.

[larryfromnextdoor]

this is just sad,, and can you imagine sitting in your living room 40 stories up in manhatten , not bothering a soul,,,.....and now your dead... ....

[Just Mindy]

Such a sad thing to happen

[Ms_M]

I have since read there are 4 confirmed dead. I can't imagine how awful that was for those people. To paraphras Yogi Berra - Deja Vu all over again!!

[AR]

Man, he took that loss to the Tigers pretty hard.....

[larryfromnextdoor]

Man, he took that loss to the Tigers pretty hard.....

AR to lighten it up!!!

[dcvader]

Man, he took that loss to the Tigers pretty hard.....

Nice one AR. It's really a bad week for the Yanks.

[Moon Beam]

This is sad I just heard about it as hubby was
getting home from work, I'll keep all affected
by this in my thoughts.

Thanks for posting the details AngieKay.

[AR]

I'll keep them in my thoughts too.

Thoughts:

How stupid is it for a pilot of only 7 months experience to be navigating around one of the largest cities in the world in a plane? If he was so hell bent on flying as a hobby he should have been navigating a crop duster in east bumbfuck Kansas or something.

Sorry he's gone, but these rich people who think they can fly (Lidle, Thurmon Munson, JFK Jr, John Denver, etc) should find less risky hobbies.

[dcvader]

I'll keep them in my thoughts too.

Thoughts:

How stupid is it for a pilot of only 7 months experience to be navigating around one of the largest cities in the world in a plane? If he was so hell bent on flying as a hobby he should have been navigating a crop duster in east bumbfuck Kansas or something.

Sorry he's gone, but these rich people who think they can fly (Lidle, Thurmon Munson, JFK Jr, John Denver, etc) should find less risky hobbies.

You are right on. There should be some flight rule changes. I always thought it was a little hairy in Manhattan with all of the helicopters flying low. They have had a few of those end up in the river in the last year or so.

[Moon Beam]

I'll keep them in my thoughts too.

Thoughts:

How stupid is it for a pilot of only 7 months experience to be navigating around one of the largest cities in the world in a plane? If he was so hell bent on flying as a hobby he should have been navigating a crop duster in east bumbfuck Kansas or something.

Sorry he's gone, but these rich people who think they can fly (Lidle, Thurmon Munson, JFK Jr, John Denver, etc) should find less risky hobbies.

Hard to argue with those thoughts.

[Ms_M]

Sorry he's gone, but these rich people who think they can fly (Lidle, Thurmon Munson, JFK Jr, John Denver, etc) should find less risky hobbies.

I think that's some of the problem - they have so much they can do and have done to do something exciting, it has to be extreme.

[TRAGChick]

CNN is in firing on all 8....got it on right now...

[Moon Beam]

Oh hell!....if everyone is watching this tonight who
is gonna watch Steve Perry?
A very small joke

[dcvader]

Oh hell!....if everyone is watching this tonight who
is gonna watch Steve Perry?
A very small joke

What time is this again?

[Ms_M]

Oh hell!....if everyone is watching this tonight who
is gonna watch Steve Perry?
A very small joke

A good one, though!

[Just Mindy]

I'll keep them in my thoughts too.

Thoughts:

How stupid is it for a pilot of only 7 months experience to be navigating around one of the largest cities in the world in a plane? If he was so hell bent on flying as a hobby he should have been navigating a crop duster in east bumbfuck Kansas or something.

Sorry he's gone, but these rich people who think they can fly (Lidle, Thurmon Munson, JFK Jr, John Denver, etc) should find less risky hobbies.

Exactly.

Thought our skyline was supposed to be safer these days...guess I was wrong

[Moon Beam]

What time is this again?

I've read around here that it's on at 11pm EST.

[Ms_M]

The only time I flew in to NYC (LaGuardia), the pilot kind of dipped the plane to the left so everyone could see the Statue of Liberty. Very creepy - and that was before 9/11!

I read it was cloudy in NYC, but I still have no idea how this happened. Anyone know anything about flight controllers? Would they have even seen this?

[jabber]

Small, sight-flying planes are not required to be in contact with air-traffic controllers. They lost him on their monitors, I think they said not long after he circled the Statue.

[TRAGChick]

OK - THAT was insane....

Wolf Blitzer talking about "the sudden loss"; how people are reacting, etc...

...and then the screen went "snowy" & no picture...

...but all the other channels worked....

[Just Mindy]

Small, sight-flying planes are not required to be in contact with air-traffic controllers. They lost him on their monitors, I think they said not long after he circled the Statue.

Its freaking me out because he was ALLOWED to get that close to the city....I thought that they were required to maintain a certain distance from the city since 9/11. I'm shaking my head here over this.

The weather has been cloudy and rainy here in NY, so that might have played a part, but like AR said, such an inexperienced pilot had no business flying here, ESPECIALLY in this weather. I can't imagine where he was headed, did anyone hear where he was trying to fly to?

[jabber]

OK - THAT was insane....

Wolf Blitzer talking about "the sudden loss"; how people are reacting, etc...

...and then the screen went "snowy" & no picture...

...but all the other channels worked....

The NYC feed went out here too. It was the satellite signal from the city; rest of the channels were fine. We're having some ugly weather rolling through.

[Ms_M]

Small, sight-flying planes are not required to be in contact with air-traffic controllers. They lost him on their monitors, I think they said not long after he circled the Statue.

That is interesting to know. I thought that had something to do with it - not being required to be in contact. Still very shocking.

Here's an updated story from the wire: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2556478

[Shadowsong]

Tragic
He had an instructor with him
Fuel problems...still 72 st is not a good place to land..
better off crashing in the water
least other innocent lives are spared

so is this classic VHI?
Don't have it...

[SteveForever]

Tragic
He had an instructor with him
Fuel problems...still 72 st is not a good place to land..
better off crashing in the water
least other innocent lives are spared

so is this classic VHI?
Don't have it...

it makes you wonder if someone was hiding in the plane?

[Red13JoePa]

I heard he thought Billy wagner and Arthur Rhodes were in that building.

[Arkansas]

I'll keep them in my thoughts too.

Thoughts:

How stupid is it for a pilot of only 7 months experience to be navigating around one of the largest cities in the world in a plane? If he was so hell bent on flying as a hobby he should have been navigating a crop duster in east bumbfuck Kansas or something.

Sorry he's gone, but these rich people who think they can fly (Lidle, Thurmon Munson, JFK Jr, John Denver, etc) should find less risky hobbies.

You are right on. There should be some flight rule changes. I always thought it was a little hairy in Manhattan with all of the helicopters flying low. They have had a few of those end up in the river in the last year or so.

No. Don't change any rules. We don't need more government. Let Darwin weed us out one by one.

And just to put my $.02 in. This is just like that Tillman story. Irks me to no end. Who gives a flip?! Why are celebrities and sports stars instant heroes? They are no more important than you or me. It's the people in that bldg that we should mourn. Who cares about some baseball player. And don't give me that 'America's greatest past time' bs either. It's the working class that lived in the bldg who are important, not some overpaid dumb jock.


later~

[NealIsGod]

I'll keep them in my thoughts too.

Thoughts:

How stupid is it for a pilot of only 7 months experience to be navigating around one of the largest cities in the world in a plane? If he was so hell bent on flying as a hobby he should have been navigating a crop duster in east bumbfuck Kansas or something.

Sorry he's gone, but these rich people who think they can fly (Lidle, Thurmon Munson, JFK Jr, John Denver, etc) should find less risky hobbies.

You are right on. There should be some flight rule changes. I always thought it was a little hairy in Manhattan with all of the helicopters flying low. They have had a few of those end up in the river in the last year or so.

No. Don't change any rules. We don't need more government. Let Darwin weed us out one by one.

Can't say I disagree. But innocent people do need to be protected from the dumbasses.

[conversationpc]

Sorry he's gone, but these rich people who think they can fly (Lidle, Thurmon Munson, JFK Jr, John Denver, etc) should find less risky hobbies.

Small airplanes are not actually that difficult to afford. Obviously, you can't be poor and own one but they are less expensive than most people think. Anyway, as long as you've had the training, it typically isn't all that risky, either.