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Philip Everton McPherson II, 36, of Haddon Township, NJ, has been charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter and 40 counts of serving as an airman without a certificate, in connection with the crash on Sept. 28, 2022 in Salisbury Township, United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that said on Monday, Aug. 5.
The victim in the crash had previously been identified as Keith Kozel, a 49-year-old IT manager from Easton, as reported by Daily Voice.
McPherson took off as the pilot-in-command of a Piper-28-140 aircraft from Queen City Airport in Allentown, PA, with the student pilot, identified in the indictment as K.K., federal paperwork says. Shortly after takeoff, McPherson crashed the plane, killing K.K.
The indictment alleges that McPherson "acted with gross negligence because he knew that he was not competent to safely fly an aircraft as the pilot-in-command."
Specifically, McPherson knew that he was not competent to safely operate the aircraft because he had two prior accidents and almost a third; he failed his Sept. 29, 2021, reexamination for his pilot’s certificate for a lack of demonstrated competence; he voluntarily surrendered his pilot’s certificate on Oct. 7, 2021, acknowledging his lack of competence; and he allowed his Temporary Airman Certificate to expire on Nov. 8, 2021, "thus further acknowledging his inability to demonstrate to the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) his competence to fly safely," Romero's office said.
The indictment further charges McPherson with 40 counts of illegally serving as the pilot-in-command of an aircraft with passengers while not possessing an FAA pilot’s certificate permitting him to do so. These flights occurred between Oct. 12, 2021, and Sept. 20, 2022.
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