A pilot and flying instructor were both pronounced dead after a small plane crashed on the CSX Railroad property in Selkirk last Monday evening.
Bethlehem police identified the occupants as Nancy Gertzberg, 61, of Petersburgh, and Allan Richter, 48, of Delmar. Police said Gertzberg was piloting the flight, while Richter was the co-pilot and flight instructor. The cause of the incident is still unknown.
Police said the single engine Cessna plane had just taken off from the South Albany Airport prior to crashing into a car hauler rail train car at CSX Railroad. The department first received a call about the crash around 4:50 p.m.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Sept. 9, Detective Sgt. Adam Hornick said first responders had some trouble upon arriving at the scene because of a fuel leak coming from the wreckage. Officials were unsure at that time if anyone in the plane had radioed for help before the crash.
Richter was profiled in a 2003 article on flight instruction by The Spotlight. In the story, former editor Katherine McCarthy took a short trip and flight lesson with the pilot.
“Flying is a very freeing experience,” said Richter in the article. “Teaching is the most fun you can have with it. I have yet to meet a student I didn’t like.”
The Bethlehem Police Department continues to investigate this incident with the assistance of the National Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Airline Administration, the Federal Railroad Administration and CSX officials.