Ten years later: Families remember victims of fiery I-285 plane crash
Four people were killed in the 2015 crash on I-285 in DeKalb County.
Mechanical problems prevented plane from gaining altitude, NTSB says.
Family raises $100K scholarship in victims' honor, planning another.
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - A decade after a fiery plane crash on I-285 in DeKalb County killed the four people on board and halted traffic, families are still grieving.
"It's hard to believe that it's been ten years," Matt Bailey, one the four plane crash victim's brother, said. "That day was really tough. Our world seemed to turn upside down."
Jackie Kulzer and her fiancé Christopher Byrd were on the plane with Byrd's father and brother. The four, along with the couple's dog, died when the plane crashed into the interstate and burst into flames.
The backstory
The Piper PA-32 had just departed DeKalb Peachtree Airport on the morning of May 8, 2015, when it crashed on I-285, killing all four people onboard.
The National Transportation Safety Board said a mechanical problem prevented the plane from gaining altitude.
Investigators said the pilot, the father of victim Christopher Byrd, had discussed engine performance issues with at least two people before takeoff. Contamination was later found in the plane's fuel manifold, investigators said.
Timeline
Shortly after takeoff, air traffic control transmissions captured the pilot saying, "I'm having some trouble climbing here, I think that we're going to be down here."
Moments later, another transmission confirmed, "5802 Victor crashed on departure, correct."
Bailey said afterward, his family received an outpour of support.
"I still talk to people often who remember exactly where they were when the accident happened," he said. "[People offered to help] here in the city and really across the country after it happened."
What they're saying
"You can never take anything for granted," Bailey said. "I mean, you know, every day you go through life just worrying about the things that are happening around you that really don't matter. People's lives can end very quickly. And so cherish the ones that you love, cherish your family and cherish the time that you have on this earth."
What you can do
Bailey and his wife Maggie have launched the Jackelyn K. & Christopher F. Byrd Memorial Scholarship for Ole Miss students, raising tens of thousands of dollars: https://ignite.olemiss.edu/project/1145
They plan to start a second for students of Christ the King primary school in Buckhead, where Jackie was an alumna.
The Source
This article is based off of original reporting by FOX 5's Rob DiRienzo. Additional information comes from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and previous FOX 5 reporting.
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