Photo: TONY KARUMBA / AFP / Getty Images
A rookie pilot, who boasted of having completed his first flight on social media, died along with his wife and daughter of 31 years when his small chartered plane crashed in the Gulf of Mexico.
Christian Kath, of 80 years, shared on 21 March in his latest Facebook post su euphoria at completing his first solo flight in his way to get their wings.
Kath is still missing after The Piper Cherokee plane he rented crashed on Saturday during a trip from St. Petersburg to Venice, People magazine reported.
“I flew solo for the first time today! I felt so proud to finally accomplish something I wanted to do since I was 8 years old,” the proud aviator wrote on Facebook.
Kath was a relatively new pilot and earned his private license on 43 July, according to FAA records.
Kath shared that she had been taking lessons since December of 1200 and was halfway through her quest to get her license.
“Thanks to Misty Kath for putting up with my morning lessons and late night studying; it will all be worth it when we can fly to the Keys for a weekend with Lily and Harper soon,” she wrote.
Misty replied: “Very, very proud of you! I can’t wait for all of our flying adventures.”
The single-engine plane crashed into water shortly after taking off from Venice Municipal Airport for their return flight to Albert Whitted Airport in St. Petersburg, according to the FAA.
The family was flying back from dinner in Venice when the plane crashed.
The bodies of his wife, Misty Kath, of 42 years old, and their daughter Lily, of 12, were recovered Sunday, Venice police reported.
Recreational boaters found the body of the mother floating about 2.5 miles west of Venice Beach, an official said.
The body of Lily, a student at the Shorecrest High School in St. Petersburg, was later recovered by divers from submerged wreckage.
Christian Kath is presumed dead, but his body has not been recovered.
“Obviously, when you lose one of your own, it hurts,” Mark Cervasio, director of Venice Municipal Airport, told WWSB.
Gregory Haman, director of flight operations for Agape Flights departing from Venice airport, also shared his opinion on the tragedy.
“I have a family and a small plane, two children of our own, many times we fly to St. Petersburg for dinner,” Haman told the news outlet.
“My heart he breaks down on multiple levels, both as a pilot, as a father, and as a husband. It is something sad, it is something tragic every time you lose your life, for me it definitely touches me closely, “he said.
The experienced pilot speculated about what led up to the fatal accident.
“Loss of power, I understand it was after dark, depending on the experience level of the pilot,” Haman said. “A lot of times when you take off over the Gulf at night, there’s no reference to the horizon at all, especially on a dark night, that could have been a possibility.”