Jordanian student crashed plane deliberately in Connecticut, investigators say
- 8 years ago
EAST HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT — Investigators believe a twin-engine plane that crashed on a street in a suburban Connecticut town was deliberately taken down.
The Piper PA-34 Seneca plane tore through power lines before catching fire and plunging into the ground in East Hartford on Tuesday.
Student Feras Freitekh, a Jordanian national, was killed. Flying instructor Arian Prevalla, originally from Albania, survived with serious burns.
Prevalla told investigators the two men had a heated exchange before his student intentionally sent the plane spiralling toward the ground, the New York Times reported.
The plane burst into a fireball just yards from a minivan loaded with passengers, but amazingly there were no further casualties.
The plane crashed near aerospace defense contractor Pratt & Whitney, which local police called “critical infrastructure.”
Based on the flying instructor’s account, the FBI has taken over the case and federal agents are now trying to establish a motive.
They are investigating whether Freitekh had mental health problems and was trying to commit suicide.
Family members in Jordan said 28-year-old Freitekh dreamed of becoming a pilot and was not at all religious, so religion wasn’t an issue, according to the New York Times.
The Piper PA-34 Seneca plane tore through power lines before catching fire and plunging into the ground in East Hartford on Tuesday.
Student Feras Freitekh, a Jordanian national, was killed. Flying instructor Arian Prevalla, originally from Albania, survived with serious burns.
Prevalla told investigators the two men had a heated exchange before his student intentionally sent the plane spiralling toward the ground, the New York Times reported.
The plane burst into a fireball just yards from a minivan loaded with passengers, but amazingly there were no further casualties.
The plane crashed near aerospace defense contractor Pratt & Whitney, which local police called “critical infrastructure.”
Based on the flying instructor’s account, the FBI has taken over the case and federal agents are now trying to establish a motive.
They are investigating whether Freitekh had mental health problems and was trying to commit suicide.
Family members in Jordan said 28-year-old Freitekh dreamed of becoming a pilot and was not at all religious, so religion wasn’t an issue, according to the New York Times.