Cape Air crash claims the life of a Vineyard pilot

By Nelson Sigelman
Published: October 2, 2008

Despite rainy weather conditions Friday evening, the short hop from Martha's Vineyard to Boston would have been routine for Cape Air pilot David D. Willey, an experienced pilot who had flown in and out of airports around the world in far more difficult circumstances.

But shortly after its 8:05 pm takeoff from Martha's Vineyard Airport, the Cape Air twin engine Cessna 402 aircraft with no passengers on board piloted by Mr. Willey, 61, of Tisbury crashed into the woods opposite Nip-N-Tuck Farm on State Road in West Tisbury. Mr. Willey died in the crash.

Mr. Willey was on a repositioning flight to Boston's Logan Airport, where he was scheduled to pick up passengers for a return flight to the Vineyard later that night.

The plane narrowly missed one house on Nip and Tuck Lane, clipped the roof of another, and ploughed a trench through the woods before coming to rest against a tree. Aircraft parts were scattered widely around the area.

Investigators from The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) arrived on Martha's Vineyard Saturday to begin an investigation into the cause of the crash. A preliminary report is expected next week, but a final report on a probable cause will likely not be available for months.

Jackie Willey, Mr. Willey's wife, works as a nurse in the office of pediatrician Michael Goldfein and for the Vineyard Nursing Association. The couple has three children.

Tuesday afternoon, family and friends gathered to celebrate Mr. Willey's life at the Agricultural Hall in West Tisbury (an obituary appears on Page 18 in the Calendar).

Michelle Haynes, Cape Air director of communications, said the twin engine Cessna 402 aircraft departed Martha's Vineyard at 8:05 pm. Shortly after takeoff from runway 33, the plane went down about two and a half miles from the airport, she said. The weather was variable, with light to heavy rain and moderate winds at the time of the accident.

Occupants of the house that the Cessna clipped had just finished eating dinner on their deck. They immediately called 911.

State Police and police, fire, and emergency personnel from West Tisbury and Chilmark responded to the scene.

NTSB senior air safety investigator Luke Schiada examined the crash site Saturday.
Photo by David Curran

Saturday morning, West Tisbury police chief Beth Toomey told The Martha's Vineyard Times that no one on the ground was injured, and there was no fire.

Saturday morning, a Chilmark police officer stood at the entrance to the crash site while police waited for a team from The NTSB to arrive.

Jesse Sonneborn, at 5 Nip and Tuck Lane, heard the noise of the crash and ran out of his house to see what had happened. Parts of the plane were strewn across his deck and lawn, he said, and the plane was in his woods. He called 911.

The plane was completely demolished. "It was totally wrapped around a tree, completely mangled," said Mr. Sonneborn.

Cape Air pilot David Willey, in front of a Cessna 402, the same type of plane that crashed Friday.
Photo courtesy of Cape Air

Reflecting on the Mr. Willey's ability to miss both houses in the final moments before the plane crashed Mr. Sonneborn said, "It looks as if he did everything he could to avoid those houses. As far as I'm concerned, he was a hero."

The plane struck the roof of the neighboring house at 15 Nip and Tuck Lane, owned by Michael L. Mayhew and rented by Janice Perrin.

Ms. Perrin, a guidance counselor at the Martha's Vineyard Public Charter School, said she thought at first the sound was coming from a drunk driver speeding through the woods. Then the plane struck. "All of a sudden there were two super loud bangs," said Ms. Perrin. "And then we called 911. Somebody else went outside to see what it was, and they screamed, 'It's a plane.' So I communicated that to 911."

Ms. Perrin said it is fortunate that the plane only clipped the house, and no one on the ground was injured. "We were eating dinner outside, not even five minutes before it happened," she said.

NTSB begins investigation of crash

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent agency charged with determining the probable cause of transportation accidents and promoting transportation safety.

Generally, a preliminary accident report is available online (ntsb.gov/ntsb/ query.asp) within a few days of an accident. Factual information is added when available, and when the investigation is complete, the preliminary report is replaced with a final description of the accident and its probable cause.

On Saturday, NTSB senior air safety investigator Luke Schiada arrived on Martha's Vineyard to begin an investigation into the cause of the Friday night Cape Air crash.

On Tuesday, as he returned to his office in New York City, Mr. Schiada stressed that it is still very early in the process. "We are still in a fact-gathering mode," Mr. Schiada explained. "We did recover a large portion of the wreckage and bring it back to the Martha's Vineyard Airport where we spent the last couple of days examining it more closely."

Mr. Schiada said NTSB expects to be able to issue a preliminary report by the end of next week that will include some of the initial information gathered so far. It will not include a description of cause.

The Cessna 402 airplane is not equipped with any type of data recorder. Mr. Schiada said he did listen to part of the air traffic control communications. "At this point, we do not have any evidence to suggest the pilot reported any kind of problems prior to the accident," he said.

Mr. Schiada said every investigation is broken down into three primary areas. The first is the aircraft. It includes a physical examination of the accident site, portions of the wreckage and a review of maintenance documents.

The second component focuses on gathering information about the pilot, such as his or her background, experience and medical history.

The third area is what the NTSB refers to as environmental conditions. That includes weather, radar data, and air traffic control information.

That information goes into a factual report, Mr. Schiada said, that is then sent to the NTSB board in Washington, DC, which will make the final determination as to a probable cause.

Mr. Schiada said every accident investigation is unique to the circumstances. Heavy rain over the weekend was uncomfortable, but did not hamper the process.

A 12-year NTSB veteran, Mr. Schiada had high praise for the Vineyard officials who assisted. "The local services, particularly the Martha's Vineyard Airport manager and the folks at the airport, have been incredibly cooperative," he said. "Both in terms of providing equipment, providing manpower, and providing actual facilities. They really made our job a lot easier."

Ms. Perrin said the wreckage was everywhere. The plane's engine was approximately 200 feet from the fuselage, she said.

Ms. Perrin had high praise for the EMTs and firefighters who gathered in her house during the night. "I don't know how those guys do that, and it is all volunteer," she said. "It's amazing."

According to weather data, there was light rain at the time of take off. Preliminarily, weather is not thought to have been a factor in Friday's fatal crash, said Ms. Haynes. Saturday's was the first fatal crash in the company's history.

Ms. Haynes said weather-related flight cancellations are always up to the individual pilot. In the event of major weather events, any decision to cancel flights is made in advance among senior management.

Cape Air is a small company and many, many people knew Mr. Willey, Ms. Haynes said. He had worked for Cape Air for three and a half years. "One of the reasons guys like Dave fly for us," she said, "is that they can be home with their families every night."

Ms. Haynes said that the professional fact-finding does not begin to suggest the effect this has had on the company. "This entire company is in mourning for him and his family," she said.

Mr. Willey had a reputation within the company as a pilot who was always willing to wait for last-minute passengers - "runners" in aviation slang - travelers sprinting through the terminal to make a flight that is ready to take off. Ms. Haynes said Mr. Willey would turn to his passengers and explain the situation and ask if they would mind if he delayed the takeoff.

"If somebody asked me what kind of guy he was," said Ms. Haynes. "He was the kind of guy who waited for runners and anyone in the airline world knows what that means."

Sean Flynn, Martha's Vineyard Airport manager, said the airport is a small place where people, from the folks who work in the restaurant and at the rental car counters to the airline workers, see each other every day.

"It's a personal loss for all of us to lose a great guy like Dave," said Mr. Flynn. "Our hearts go out to his family."

Mr. Flynn said the NTSB is investigating the cause with assistance from the aircraft manufacturer and engine manufacturer. "They have assembled a very knowledgeable group of people," he said. "If answers can be found they will be found."

For those who knew Mr. Willey best, his death in a plane crash was devastating news. The news began filtering through the Martha's Vineyard community soon after the first emergency personnel arrived, and it was not long before the community embraced the family.

On Monday, Greg Coogan answered the telephone at the Willey house on Codding Lane. Mr. Coogan, a Tisbury School teacher and Oak Bluffs selectman, is married to Jackie Willey's sister Sharon.

Mr. Coogan said that since Saturday the road to the Willey house had been lined with automobiles, as friends stopped by to provide support and words of comfort.

"The kids all went through the Tisbury School, and then they went to the high school so their tentacles reach throughout the community," said Mr. Coogan " and Jackie I think has probably seen every baby that was born on Martha's Vineyard for the last 10 or 15 years, so every mother knows who she is."

The Willeys' children, Megan, 24, a graduate student at Smith College, Ross, 20, a junior at Plymouth State in New Hampshire, and Sophie, 18, a freshman at American University in Washington, D.C. and former member of the high school cross-country track team, returned home when they heard the news of their father's death.

On Tuesday the cross-country team cancelled a scheduled meet in order to attend the service held in the Ag Hall in West Tisbury, attended by more than 400 people.

Mr. Coogan said his brother-in-law's flying career began in the Navy and later included dropping fire retardant on California fires and spotting swordfish for Vineyard commercial fishermen. Prior to joining Cape Air, Mr. Willey flew large aircraft for Southern Air Transport all over the world.

But the job kept him away from his family and the Vineyard. Mr. Coogan said Mr. Willey had very high regard for Cape Air's emphasis on safety. He also liked having the opportunity to interact with the many passengers who traveled with him, in the intimate confines of his nine-seat aircraft on the Vineyard route.

"He flew the biggest planes going and probably landed in every major and minor airport in the world," said Mr. Coogan, "but he truly loved working for Cape Air, because he could come home every night."