The airport at Teterboro, N.J., has had a run of trouble lately, and Friday night a Cessna 177 crashed into the Hackensack Post Office, about a half-mile from the field. The pilot, Karen Hunter, 53, of Brooklyn, died, and passenger Sharon Osborne, 42, of Denver, was critically hurt. Hunter was headed for a landing at nearby Essex County Airport when she reported engine trouble about 9:30 p.m. and diverted to Teterboro. The accident was the fourth since February, when a Challenger bizjet ran off the runway. Another jet ran off a snowy runway in March and in May a twin-engine turbroprop crashed on final. Twenty-two people were hurt in those accidents, but there were no other fatalities. Teterboro is one of the nation’s busiest small airports, handling more than 200,000 arrivals and departures last year. Close to Manhattan, it’s operated as a reliever airport by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and is popular with corporate and GA aircraft. The FAA in March warned pilots to be careful about operating in the airport’s congested airspace, and local authorities have called for a reduction in traffic at the airport.
Cessna Crashes Into Post Office
Key Takeaways:
- A Cessna 177 crashed near Teterboro Airport, killing the pilot and critically injuring the passenger after reporting engine trouble during an emergency diversion.
- This was the fourth accident at or near Teterboro since February, bringing the total casualties from these incidents to one fatality and 22 injuries.
- Teterboro, a busy reliever airport, has faced recent warnings from the FAA regarding its congested airspace and calls from local authorities for a reduction in air traffic.
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