Crime & Safety
Man Who Died in Brookfield Plane Crash Was Pilot, Husband and Father
The male pilot of a small aircraft is dead after the plane carrying he, his wife and child crashed before takeoff at a Brookfield airport.
BROOKFIELD -- Authorities have identified the pilot who died in the single-engine plane crash at Brookfield's Capitol Airport on Wednesday. According to officials, that man was 41-year-old Cory Papenfuss of Virgina. He leaves behind his 37-year-old wife and six-month-old son.
Papenfuss reportedly died late Wednesday while at Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa. According to WISN 12, Papenfuss' wife and son survived the crash. His wife was reportedly still in critical condition at Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa, and son was reportedly not injured in the crash.
Papenfuss was a research associate at the Vibrations and Acoustics Laboratory at Virginia Tech. He received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering in from Virginia Tech in 2006, M.S. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001, and B.S. from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks in 1998.
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Wednesday's Plane Crash
Three people were seriously injured after a report of a small plane crash at the Capitol Airport in Brookfield. According to Waukesha County Sheriff's officials, the call came in just after 12 p.m. Wednesday afternoon.
Find out what's happening in Brookfieldfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
According to a report from FOX 6 on Wednesday afternoon, the pilot, his wife and an infant were hurt as a result of the crash, and that all three were transported to Froedtert Hospital either by Flight for Life or via the City of Brookfield Fire Department. FOX 6 has learned that their plane crashed before takeoff, and collided with an unoccupied SUV.
Brookfield police said that the male adult appeared to be the "most injured" and that the infant was taken to the Wauwatosa Children's Hospital "to be checked out," according to a report from Brookfield NOW.
JUST IN: Pilot from Virginia dies following plane crash at Capitol Airport in Brookfield https://t.co/BbyXKszuGU pic.twitter.com/VXAdMUCR5N
— FOX6 News (@fox6now) January 5, 2017
Plane at the Capitol Airport crashed on takeoff after crashing into the blue SUV. Three people on board including infant who appeared okay. pic.twitter.com/cVHW8693Tm
— Beverly Taylor (@fox6bevtaylor) January 4, 2017
Scene of a plane crash at Capitol Airport in Brookfield. We saw a Flight for Life helicopter leave the scene. @CBS58 pic.twitter.com/jIoSTq5ntc
— David Ade (@DavidAdeCBS58) January 4, 2017
.@ChopperMatt over scene of plane crash at Capitol Drive Airport in Brookfield. Appears plane struck vehicle near runway. @WISN12News pic.twitter.com/3kDfapSj7J
— Kent Wainscott (@Kentwainscott) January 4, 2017
According to a WISN report, preliminary reports from the scene indicate the plane was "entirely demolished."
The airport, which serves several dozen airport daily, according to WISN, is located at 21500 Gumina Rd. in Pewaukee.
>>> image via google earth / image via virginia tech university/via youtube
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