I talked to Jane Wicker on the phone a few times. We made the graphics on her plane... not a lot, just the N-number, pilot and aircraft names, and the other text graphics. She called her plane "Aurora".
She always sounded excited on the phone, as if I she were telling me about her first flight, even though we were just talking about vinyl graphics.
It was a very tragic accident and the videos show a very graphic example of a stall, possibly exacerbated by the weight of Jane so far out on the wing. The plane appears to stop rolling as Jane's wing comes around and starts upward. I speculate that the pilot may have added just a bit more aileron, and that pushed it out of the envelope and into a stall. Very tragic.
Go to youtube if you want to see them. Not for the faint hearted.
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2013/j ... pilot-die/ On a related topic, I had a very serious conversation with Tammy about this accident. Partly because Brent and Blake are now interested in flying (Brent is very close to soloing). I said "If any of us ever gets hurt or killed in an airplane, please remember that we are doing something that we love." I honestly don't know what I'd do for fun, or to fill my free time if not for aviation. It sounds silly, but nothing else holds my interest, or offers such a wide array of fun, exciting, interesting, and challenging things to do. I must be crazy but I think about it all of the time.
Sorry.... I just felt compelled to share my thoughts today. I hope they help someone.
Vince