Ark Valley News - Pilot killed in crash had local connections

Pilot killed in crash had local connections
By David Dinell
Last Updated: October 01, 2015

The pilot of a small plane that crashed shortly after takeoff on Sept. 25 from Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita was a former Valley Center resident. Aaron W. Waters lived in the 700 block of Dover Drive, southeast of Lions Park, where he had built a house.

Waters was the pilot and sole occupant of a Cessna 310 twin-engine aircraft. He was killed in the incident, which happened shortly before 4 p.m. Witnesses say there was a sputtering noise from the plane and it was off balance, with one wing high in the air.

Waters asked for permission to return to the airport, quickly blurting into the airport's radio traffic that, "This is an emergency, I've got to come in."

However, he never made it, instead crashing into heavy woods near Cowskin Creek in west Wichita by Maple and West streets. Officials say he managed, in his final seconds at the controls, to steer the plane away from houses, thus possibly saving the lives of others.

He also managed to stop all power to the plane before the crash as there was no explosion or fire. Witnesses said the plane simply flew right into the ground, where it broke into pieces.

Waters was 46 and only one day away from his 47th birthday. He owned and operated a company called Aircraft Certification and Systems Engineering LLC, based in Parker, Colo. His family includes a wife and three children.

At press time, no details about a service were available. When contacted by The News, a family member, who identified herself as a sister-in-law, said she didn't wish to comment about Waters and the accident.

However, a friend of Waters and former neighbor, Terry Larsen, told the Parker (Colo.) Chronicle that Waters was always thoughtful of others and his actions in the accident showed his unselfish nature.

"Obviously, he knew pretty quickly he was going to go down," Larsen said. "Knowing the person he was, he made every effort to avoid any collision with anyone on the ground."

Larsen, who now lives in Utah, attended a Mormon church with Waters, and said he was well respected there.

Waters, a graduate of Brigham Young University, earned a degree in mechanical engineering and spent his career in aviation, a profession he was passionate about.

From 1999 to 2008, he worked as an engineering specialist at Cessna Aircraft Co. in Wichita and then went to work as an air safety engineer for the Federal Aviation Administration until 2011.

In the fall of 2011, he started Aircraft Certification and Systems Engineering LLC in Colorado, a company he was president and owner of. The business dealt with FAA certification project management, as well as with technical training and training development.

Along with aviation, Waters liked amateur radio and records show he was a registered radio licensee while living in Valley Center.

Larsen also told the Chronicle that Waters held prominent leadership roles in the Mormon church and once was a missionary. Waters will be missed, Larsen said, and he had more to give as he was at the "peak of his life."

The accident is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board, which is set to release an initial report in several days.

A final report will take between six months and a year, officials say. The aircraft was registered to Celestial Knights LLC, also based in Parker. The Cessna 310 was the initial twin-engined aircraft from Cessna after World War II and was introduced in 1953.

The four-passenger plane Waters was in was built in 1972, according to the FAA. While 43 years may sound old for an aircraft, it's not considered such in the aviation world as many aircraft continue to fly for four decades or more.