Wing walker Jane Wicker killed after airshow crash in Dayton

A wing-walker and her pilot are dead after a fiery crash at the Dayton airshow on Saturday.

Authorities confirmed to WHIO TV that Jane Wicker died when her plane, a 450 HP Stearman, fell to the ground.

She was apparently sitting on the inverted aircraft when it crashed, the local station reported.

“Obviously this is a tragedy for what is a very small community,” Director of Aviation Terrence Slaybaugh told WHIO.

The airplane lurched or titled before it hit the ground and burst into flames right in front of horrified spectators.

Despite the quick arrival of a fire truck, there was nothing emergency crews could do to save Wicker or her pilot, whose name wasn’t released.

There were no other injuries or fatalities, USA Today said.

“I noticed it was upside down really close to the ground,” witness Shawn Warwick told the Dayton Daily News. “She was sitting on the bottom of the plane. … I saw it just go right into the ground and explode.”

Investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration are on the scene, saying they had no early indications of what caused the crash.

The show was cancelled for the rest of the day, but it’s unclear if it will continue on Sunday.
Another stunt pilot, Jim LeRoy, died at Dayton in 2007.

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