Additional information has surfaced regarding a private plane crash in New York that resulted in the deaths of six individuals, occurring just minutes from an airport.
On April 12, at approximately noon Eastern Time, the aircraft crashed into a muddy field in Copake, near the Massachusetts border in upstate New York. It had taken off from Westchester County Airport in White Plains, a suburb of New York City.
According to Flight Aware data, the twin-engine Mitsubishi MU-2B was supposed to take off at 10:50 a.m. but did not leave until 11:34 a.m. The plane was in the air for about 30 minutes before it crashed.
The jet was intended to land at Columbia County Airport at 11:16 a.m., but due to the delayed departure, it approached around midday.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reported yesterday that the pilot communicated with air traffic control at the airport, stating that he had missed his assigned spot and needed a new approach plan.
At 12:04 p.m., Flight Aware showed that the plane “landed” approximately 10 miles south of Columbia County Airport.
The aircraft was owned by Dr. Michael Groff, a neuroscientist, and his wife, Dr. Joy Saini, a urogynecologist. Both were on board.
Their daughter, Karenna Groff, a former MIT soccer player and the 2022 NCAA Woman of the Year, was also on the flight with her boyfriend James Santoro, another recent MIT graduate.
Joining them were her brother Jared Groff, a 2022 Swarthmore College graduate who worked as a paralegal, and his partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, also a Swarthmore graduate planning to attend Harvard Law School in the fall.
The New York Times reported that Dr. Groff was piloting the plane, although no official report has confirmed this. A family statement referred to him as an “experienced” pilot.
NTSB investigator Todd Inman revealed during a news conference that the pilot missed an approach at the landing airport and requested another attempt.
Nonetheless, the air traffic control radar indicated a “low altitude alert,” and despite efforts by the air traffic controller to inform the pilot, they were unsuccessful, even after attempting to contact them three more times.
Video footage of the crash suggests that the aircraft was intact before crashing at a steep angle into the ground around 12:06 p.m.
Inman commented, “In regard to visibility, weather will be one of many different [things] we will look at.”
He also noted that the plane was “compressed, buckled and embedded in the terrain.”
NTSB investigators are expected to remain on-site for about a week, with a preliminary report available in roughly 30 days and a full investigation possibly taking 12 to 24 months.
The family was reportedly visiting the Catskills for a birthday celebration and the Passover holiday.
A joint statement from the Groff, Santoro, and Duarte families expressed their grief: “We are devastated by the loss of our beloved family members. We will remember them as the six brilliant, dynamic, and loving people that they were.”
James’ father, John Santoro, shared with the Associated Press: “They were a wonderful family. The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We’re all personally devastated.”
Michael’s family, quoted by Times Union, described him as “an experienced pilot, who fell in love with flying after being taught by his father at the age of sixteen.”
Rochester Regional Health CEO Richard Davis stated: “Dr. Groff was a highly respected neurosurgeon and physician leader, known for his clinical excellence, compassionate care and unwavering commitment to advancing the field of neuroscience.”
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