Pilots killed in Greenville plane crash weren’t certified to fly private jet, report says

The men who died in the private jet crash in Greenville, South Carolina were not certified to fly the plane, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

The newspaper reports the two Florida men were experienced pilots, but neither had federal certification to fly the Dassault Falcon 50.

Police said the plane slid off the runway as it was landing at the Greenville Downtown Airport.

Both the pilot and co-pilot died in the crash that broke the plane in two as it slid off the runway and into Airport Road.

The Tampa Bay Times reported pilot John Caswell, 49, was certified to be second-in-command on the Falcon 50, but not as “pilot in command” based on the Federal Aviation Administration pilot registry.

The co-pilot, Stephen Fox, 66, did not appear to be certified at all on the private jet, according to the newspaper. “No Stephen Fox or Stephen George Fox in the registry has a pilot-in-command or second-in-command rating for the Falcon 50,” the paper reported.

The Greenville News cited National Transportation Safety Board investigator Dan Boggs, who told the newspaper both men were “seasoned pilots” with more than 16,000 flight hours between them.

Fox Carolina reported Caswell died at the crash site and Fox was taken to the hospital but later died.

Two other people were on board at the time of the crash. The married couple, who have not been named, were transported to the hospital in critical condition, according to Fox Carolina.

The Tampa Bay Times spoke to Texas flight instructor Robert Katz who described the pilots as unqualified for the plane. Co-pilot Fox “was not qualified to be on that flight deck, period,” Katz said, according to the newspaper. Katz tracks plane crashes nationally

The NTSB’s preliminary report on the crash is expected in two to three weeks, according to TV station WSPA.

Charles Duncan: 843-626-0301, @duncanreporting

This story was originally published October 2, 2018 at 1:04 PM.