KONESKY, James
KONESKY, James (1947-2002), 54-yeasr-old pilot from Cave Creek, AZ, was killed with Jeannie Hansel, 48, after their aircraft ran off the runway at Airport in the Sky and caught fire on August 2, 2002.
- LASD file #002-00604-1878-494
- Coroner case #2002-05787 (Konesky) and 2002-05788 (Hansel)
In the News~
August 9, 2002 [TI/Avalon]: “The Catalina Island Airport in the Sky was the scene of a tragic crash of an incoming plane last Friday afternoon. Fog contributed to the pilot’s difficulty in putting his Beechcraft Baron twin engine plane down on the runway. According to Station Commander Gary Olson, the pilot was approaching the airport from the ocean side, trying for runway 44, at high speed. He misjudged the length of the runway, was unable to stop before plunging off into the hillside brush, about 100 yards from the end of the runway. The plane disintegrated on impact, burst into flames, starting a brush fire in the surrounding area. Both the pilot and his female passenger were killed instantly. The couple were coming from Cave Creek, Arizona, outside Scottsdale, to meet up with a brother, also flying in from Concord. The brother landed successfully shortly before the ill-fated Beechcraft. The brush fire burned about one quarter acre before it was extinguished by both county and city fire personnel, Search & Rescue, both the east and west teams, Sheriff’s deputies from both Avalon and the Isthmus, plus volunteer firemen from Avalon. The crash occurred at 2:15 P.M. Friday afternoon. By 5:30 P.M. a helicopter carrying the coroner and crash investigation representatives had arrived on the scene. The bodies were retrieved and removed to the mainland by 9:30 P.M. The pilot was a 54 year old man, accompanied by his longtime companion, a 48 year old woman. This was the second airplane crash with fatalities, and brush fire resulting from it in several years. The preceding crash was responsible for causing the fire at Goat Harbor.”
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