Latest news with #JoySaini
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
New Details Revealed About Final Moments of Upstate New York Plane Crash That Killed Former College Soccer Star and Family
The National Transportation Safety Board has released an initial report on the April plane crash that killed a family from Massachusetts The report states that the Mitsubishi MU-2B-40 plane, flown by Michael Groff, had stopped responding to air traffic controllers minutes before it crashed Six people were killed, including Groff, his wife Joy Saini, his daughter Karenna Groff and her boyfriend James Santoro, his son Jared and Jared's girlfriend Alexia Couyutas DuarteInvestigators have released new details about the final moments of a plane crash in upstate New York that killed a family from Massachusetts. According to a report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) published on Friday, May 9, Michael Groff — the father and neurosurgeon who was at the controls of the family's small plane before it crashed in the Catskill Mountains last month — had stopped communication with air traffic control just moments before the fatal incident. In the report, officials said that Michael's Mitsubishi MU-2B-40 plane left Westchester County Airport in White Plains, N.Y., on the morning of Saturday, April 12, at around 11:30 a.m. local time, and Michael headed north to Columbia County Airport in Hudson, N.Y. The plane had departed the Boston area earlier that morning, and Michael picked up his daughter Karenna Groff, who was named the NCAA Woman of the Year in 2022, as well as her partner James Santoro, in New York to celebrate Karenna's 25th birthday in the Catskills. Also onboard the plane were Michael's wife and urogynecologist Joy Saini, Karenna's brother Jared, and Jared's partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte. All six people died in the crash, the report confirmed. At 11:57 a.m., Michael alerted air traffic control that he had missed the initial approach to the runway at Columbia County Airport. Controllers then gave him new landing instructions, and he responded just after 12 p.m., per the report. About one minute later, the controller told Michael that the plane was flying too low, and he did not answer. The plane disappeared from radar visibility by 12:03 p.m., and eventually crashed into a snowy area about 10 miles south of the airport. The NTSB did not confirm the cause of the crash in the report, but said that all of the major machinery was found within 150 feet of the crash site. The report also stated that the weather was overcast at the time of the crash. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. "The wreckage was recovered to a secure facility for further examination," the NTSB added, noting that the report is preliminary and an investigation is still ongoing. Friends and family of the victims have previously spoken out about the tragedy. 'They were a wonderful family,' James' father, John Santoro, told the AP. 'The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We're all personally devastated.' Reflecting on the loss of his son specifically, he added, 'The 25 years we had with James were the best years of our lives, and the joy and love he brought us will be enough to last a lifetime.' Read the original article on People
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
New York Plane Crash Victims Identified as NCAA Woman of the Year and Family
The victims of a plane crash in upstate New York have been identified as a former NCAA Woman of the Year and members of her family. Karenna Groff, a former MIT soccer player who was named NCAA Woman of the Year in 2022, died alongside her mother Dr. Joy Saini, father Dr. Michael Groff, partner James Santoro, brother Jared Groff, and her brother's partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, the Associated Press reported. The group was traveling in a private plane to the Catskills on Saturday for a birthday celebration and to mark the Passover holiday when the twin-engine Mitsubishi MU-2B went down in a field in nearby Copake, killing everyone onboard, according to the AP. The air traffic control tower at the Columbia County Airport said the pilot missed the initial approach to the runway and radioed to organize a second attempt. But the tower then lost contact with the plane while preparing to radio new coordinates to the pilot. Officials said air traffic controllers radioed a low altitude alert to the Mitsubishi MU-2B three times before the crash, but there was no response and no mayday call. Video showed the plane was intact as it crashed into the field, AP reported. Karenna Groff and her partner James Santoro were both recent graduates of MIT, where Groff played soccer and Santoro played lacrosse. John Santoro, James's father, told AP: 'They were a wonderful family. The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We're all personally devastated.' Jared Groff worked as a paralegal after graduating from Swarthmore College in 2022 alongside his partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, who was set to start studying at Harvard Law School this fall. Karenna and Jared's father Dr. Michael Groff worked as a neuroscientist while their mother Dr. Joy Saini was a urogynecologist. It comes after a Spanish family of five died when a helicopter plunged into the Hudson River on Thursday last week. The victims included Agustín Escobar, president of the Spanish division of tech giant Siemens, his wife, Merce Camprubi Montal, and their three children—ages 4, 5, and 11. The family were on a sightseeing flight over Manhattan to celebrate Montal's birthday when the helicopter crashed approximately 16 minutes after takeoff. The 36-year-old pilot, Seankese Johnson, also died in the crash.
