GhLinks Media
A private jet crash in Virginia has claimed the lives of five people, including a prominent figure in the aviation industry. Spanish newspaper El Español has identified Alfredo Diez, founder and CEO of Atlantis Aviation, his wife, and their young son as three of the victims.
The accident occurred near Ingalls Field Airport in Bath County on Sunday. The private jet reportedly burst into flames upon impact, leaving no survivors.
Diez, originally from Betanzos, Spain, reportedly relocated to Florida in 2016 to establish his flight academy. His LinkedIn profile indicates that he later became the CEO of Sky Jet Elite in 2020.
Social media tributes have begun to emerge, with Adolfo Perez Castillo expressing his grief on Facebook: “My great friend Alfredo J Diez departed yesterday with his family and crew to his eternal flight.”
‘My friend Alfredo and I did business since 2019 and he was a great Galician. Born in the town of Betanzos in the corona. A Spanish citizen who built Atlantis flight academy and sky elite charter in these recent years representing Spain and Galicia well in South Florida.’
The plane, a twin-engine IAI Astra 1125, crashed around 3 p.m. on Sunday when the airplane came down short of the runway as it was attempting to make an emergency landing.
The Virginia State Police said the plane fell short of the runway, plowed through trees before slamming into a hillside.
The plane reportedly left from Fort Lauderdale, Florida and was scheduled to land at Ingalls Field Airport in Hot Springs, Virginia.
An attorney for the plane’s owner and family friend told police that the people aboard planned to attend an event at the nearby Homestead Resort.
