Air Crash in Centralia Illinois
 

It is with great sadness that I have to inform you guys of the tragic death of Steven Pickup a British Chief Instructor from Yorkshire at Airgo Int. and his student Alan MCcarthey an American here in the US.

This very tragic and sad incident occured yesterday morning at centralia airport in Illinois just after take-off from the airfield in a cessna 172.

Steve was a very dedicated and professional pilot with over 2000hrs of flight time and would always be remembered as someone who would go out of his way to help others.

Alan his student was a principal of the local school here in centralia and was undertaking his final lesson with steve before taking his private flight test.

Both men will be dearly missed.

A church service for both Steve and Alan will be held at Centralia on saturday the 24th at 9:30am in the morning and a few of us here will be attending the service here before steve is flown home back to Yorkshire and laid to rest.

I was at airgo in 1996, my sympathy to all.