Nebraska STOL Fatality

Tragedy struck the opening day of a STOL in Wayne, Nebraska, when a popular backcountry flyer, Tom Dafoe, was killed when he lost control of the 1946 Cessna 140 he…

Tragedy struck the opening day of a STOL in Wayne, Nebraska, when a popular backcountry flyer, Tom Dafoe, was killed when he lost control of the 1946 Cessna 140 he was flying. The crash was witnessed by dozens of people at the Wayne MayDay STOL event. The remainder of the competition, which was scheduled to run through the weekend, was canceled following the crash. Dafoe, who worked at jetAviva and who had worked for Textron Aviation for many years prior to that, was 45. He is survived by his wife, five children and one grandchild. The crash happened in an ad hoc event that was more like a conventional short takeoff and landing than the planned STOL Drag event, in which the participating aircraft compete in a low-level out-and-back drag race.

J BeckettWriter

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Get the latest Plane & Pilot Magazine stories delivered directly to your inbox

Subscribe to our newsletter