Upstate New York Plane Crash Kills Pilot, Seriously Injures Passenger

Upstate New York Plane Crash Kills Pilot, Seriously Injures Passenger.

November 23, 2009, A single engine plane headed from Orange County Airport to Danbury, Connecticut crashed about halfway into its 50-mile flight yesterday killing the pilot and seriously injuring its only passenger.

Amir Tirosh, 52, of Bedford Hills, an aviation instrument engineer and executive was reportedly at the controls of the 1974 single-engine Piper Cherokee when it reported an oil pressure problem. Tirosh planned to make an emergency landing at Dutchess County Airport, but crashed in a wooded area about four miles from the runway.

According to public records and news reports, the aircraft is registered to Ayalon Flight Services of Mount Kisco, Westchester County.

The passenger, Daniel Bisk, 53, of Pleasantville, was airlifted to Westchester Medical Center with serious injuries and remains hospitalized, officials said.

Tirosh was reportedly a former Israeli air force pilot and the owner of AirGator Inc., a company that manufactures and provides digital global positioning navigation equipment used by both pilots and mariners

About halfway into the 50-mile flight, Tirosh reported oil-pressure problems and was diverted to the Dutchess County Airport. The plane came down about 1:30 p.m., according to Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Jim Peters.

“He lost engine power and crashed in a wooded area southwest of the airport,” Peters said.

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