Possum
Pre-takeoff checklist
LYNCHBURG, S.C. — A 49-year-old crop duster pilot killed in a plane crash Thursday morning in Lee County is being remembered by his family as a man who spent his life doing what he loved.
The Lee County coroner identified the pilot as Junior Hopkins. His family says he leaves behind a wife and young daughter.
The Federal Aviation Administration said a Weatherly 620B crashed in a field near Bishopville around 8:15 a.m. Thursday. Hopkins was the only person on board.
His mother, Deborah Hopkins, said crop dusting had long been her son’s passion.
“He would always sit there and said I'm going to be a crop duster, Mama. So he done his passion and I'm just sorry it ended this way, but he's in God's hands,” Hopkins said.
Hopkins said her son had taken off that morning for what she expected to be a routine flight. She became concerned when he did not return as quickly as expected and later saw a missed call from his wife. When she called back, her granddaughter answered and told her he had died.
His mother said flying was more than a job for Hopkins. She said he loved using his crop duster for special moments in the community, including gender reveals, and had been planning to purchase another airplane.
“It was his passion. He loved it with a heartbeat,” she said.
Neighbors said Hopkins and his crop duster had become a familiar part of life around the fields near the crash site.
Barbara recalled one occasion more than a decade ago when Hopkins helped make her daughter’s engagement memorable.
“And thirteen years ago, my daughter was engaged and her fiance worked night after night in a wheat field and put Will you marry me? And they knew the crop duster. And he's the one that carried them up and let her see it. And he was a super nice person,” Barbara said.
Lee County sheriff’s deputies, firefighters, EMS crews and the coroner’s office responded to the crash Thursday morning. By the afternoon, most emergency crews had cleared the scene, with a deputy remaining to secure the wreckage.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating. The NTSB is leading the investigation and is expected to send two investigators to determine what caused the aircraft to go down.
No cause has been announced.
https://www.wltx.com/article/news/n...rial/507-1ee5db88-c2c9-4c57-84b5-76268d6b998f
The Lee County coroner identified the pilot as Junior Hopkins. His family says he leaves behind a wife and young daughter.
The Federal Aviation Administration said a Weatherly 620B crashed in a field near Bishopville around 8:15 a.m. Thursday. Hopkins was the only person on board.
His mother, Deborah Hopkins, said crop dusting had long been her son’s passion.
“He would always sit there and said I'm going to be a crop duster, Mama. So he done his passion and I'm just sorry it ended this way, but he's in God's hands,” Hopkins said.
Hopkins said her son had taken off that morning for what she expected to be a routine flight. She became concerned when he did not return as quickly as expected and later saw a missed call from his wife. When she called back, her granddaughter answered and told her he had died.
His mother said flying was more than a job for Hopkins. She said he loved using his crop duster for special moments in the community, including gender reveals, and had been planning to purchase another airplane.
“It was his passion. He loved it with a heartbeat,” she said.
Neighbors said Hopkins and his crop duster had become a familiar part of life around the fields near the crash site.
Barbara recalled one occasion more than a decade ago when Hopkins helped make her daughter’s engagement memorable.
“And thirteen years ago, my daughter was engaged and her fiance worked night after night in a wheat field and put Will you marry me? And they knew the crop duster. And he's the one that carried them up and let her see it. And he was a super nice person,” Barbara said.
Lee County sheriff’s deputies, firefighters, EMS crews and the coroner’s office responded to the crash Thursday morning. By the afternoon, most emergency crews had cleared the scene, with a deputy remaining to secure the wreckage.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating. The NTSB is leading the investigation and is expected to send two investigators to determine what caused the aircraft to go down.
No cause has been announced.
https://www.wltx.com/article/news/n...rial/507-1ee5db88-c2c9-4c57-84b5-76268d6b998f