Pilot killed in crash after skydivers leap from plane near Niagara Falls

globalnews.ca:

Niagara County Sheriff’s Office said. The plane crashed in Youngstown, N.Y., about 24 kilometres from Niagara Falls.After an initial investigation, police determined that Georger had released all the skydivers on the plane and was heading back to land when she crashed.

A small brush fire broke out at the site of the crash.Georger’s father Paul mourned his daughter’s death in a heartbreaking Facebook post.“My beloved daughter, my best friend and one of the two lights of my life passed away suddenly today. Melanie was a pilot, on the cusp of realizing her dream to fly for the airlines.

She was doing what she loved, flying for a local skydiving company, when her plane crashed,” he wrote.“She was only 26. My life is much darker today and will remain so for a long time.”Georger was a pilot for Skydive the Falls, police revealed.

The company, which advertises a scenic flyover of Niagara Falls before each skydive, has yet to publicly comment on its employee’s death.A skydiver on a flight piloted by Georger right before the one that crashed said he felt blessed to be alive and lamented that her life was cut short.“Why didn’t it happen when I was up there? Why didn’t it happen when we were all on the plane?” first-time jumper Jeffrey Walker told The Associated Press. He described the events as “surreal.”He said he was unconcerned by the pilot’s youth, and that she checked in with him personally and shared encouraging words about his tandem skydiving partner, boosting his confidence before he jumped.“I give her props for wanting to do what she was doing,” he said.

“I really feel bad for the business and the company she was working for, because they’re a great company. I thought they did a great job training.”In an interview with