Wind, not pilot error, likely cause of crash at air show, friend says

Friends of a veteran show pilot killed Sunday while performing a dangerous stunt in Northern California were stunned by his death, saying the fiery crash was probably caused by factors outside of his control.

Bob Lessman told Fox 40 Eddie Andreini, 77, was an experienced pilot and had performed a “cutting ribbon” maneuver -- which involves attaching a knife to the plane and slicing a ribbon just off the ground -- many times before Sunday’s performance at Travis Air Force Base.

The crash, he said, was probably the result of a sudden gust of wind, not pilot error.

Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration were assisting with the investigation, which is being led by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Andreini died when his plane slammed upside down into the tarmac and slid about 500 feet before bursting into flames, officials said.

Witness Iris Taggart told the Fox 40 she thought the stunt was part of his act.

“I don’t think I’ll sleep tonight. It’s just too mind-boggling for me not to think that I’ll ever see Eddie perform again,” Taggart told the station.

The accident occurred during the second day of the Thunder Over Solano air show, which draws tens of thousands of visitors to the base.

Andreini’s fellow stunt pilots mourned his death.

“It’s a tragic loss. We’re a tight-knit group,” Steve Stavrakakis, who performed before Andreini, told the San Francisco Chronicle. “Anytime something like this happens, it’s devastating to our family.”

Andreini began flying at 16 and had taken to the air for almost 1,000 performances, which were described on his website as a close-to-the-crowd experience.

On Travis Air Force Base’s Facebook page, officials announced that the air show had been canceled. Spectators were also asked to submit video and pictures that could help investigators piece together what happened in the moments before the crash.