Photos reveal mangled wreckage of private plane that crashed in upstate NY, killing family of doctors, athletes
Newly released photos revealed the mangled remains of a private plane that crashed in a muddy field in upstate New York over the weekend, killing a family of doctors and high-achieving student athletes.
Horrifying aerial images show the small Mitsubishi MU-2B-40 scattered in pieces across a field in Copake, where it crashed Saturday afternoon while taking six people to the Catskills to celebrate a birthday and Passover.
Other images show National Transportation Safety Board officers surveying the smashed-up aircraft.
The Groff family — neuroscientist father Michael Groff, urologist mother Joy Saini, their MIT-grad daughter Karenna and her boyfriend James Sontoro — were all killed Saturday when the plane crashed into the ground.
Their son, Jared Groff, and his partner, Alexia Couyutas Duarte, were also killed in the crash.
A third child of the Massachusetts couple, daughter Anika, was not on the plane.
“They were a wonderful family,” the father of James, John Sontoro, said. “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.”
His son was also an MIT graduate and worked in finance, while Karenna was studying medicine at New York University after being named the NCAA woman of the year in 2022 for her soccer and academic achievements at MIT. The pair were planning to get engaged in the summer.
Dr. Groff was an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and also served as executive director of neuroscience at Rochester Regional Health, the Times Union reported. He was also an experienced pilot.
“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved family members,” a statement from the surviving family read. “We will remember them as the six brilliant, dynamic, and loving people that they were.”
The family departed from a White Plains airport Saturday morning and was due to land at the Columbia County Airport around noon, but the plane missed its approach.
While the pilot requested directions for a second attempt from air traffic controllers, the tower indicated a “low altitude alert” and lost contact with the plane.
Within moments, the small plane crashed in the field, National Transportation Safety Board investigator Albert Nixon said at a press conference Sunday.
The federal agency is continuing to investigate the accident.
