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- Oct 21, 2003
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From this morning's Daily Oklahoman............
NORMAN — A longtime Norman surgeon was killed when the twin-engine plane he was piloting crashed Wednesday as it tried to land at Max Westheimer Airport.
Emergency workers look over the wreckage of a deadly plane crash Wednesday at Norman's Max Westheimer Airport. Authorities said Dr. Robert Spector was killed when the plane he was piloting crashed. Photo by Ty Russell
Dr. Robert Spector, 62, was arriving from Austin, Texas, when the crash occurred, Deputy Fire Chief James Fullingim said.
The Piper Seneca PA-34 clipped the terminal and nose-dived into the ground about 4:25 p.m., Fullingim said.
"The Norman Regional Hospital family is deeply saddened by the passing of Dr. Robert Spector," hospital President David Whitaker said.
"Dr. Spector was a highly regarded and respected surgeon on Norman Regional's medical staff. His compassionate caring will be greatly missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with Dr. Spector's family."
Officials with the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Safety Transportation Board remained on the scene Wednesday night investigating the crash. A cause of the accident had not been determined.
Blanchard residents Ty Breckenridge and Lenore Wilde were watching from Ozzie's Diner inside the airport terminal as the plane came in.
Breckenridge said the plane was flying through a crosswind when it tipped right and struck the tarmac with its nose wheel.
"Then the right wheel hit and bounced him back up. It looked like he tried to give it full throttle to bank and climb back up but he didn't make it," Breckenridge said.
The plane cleared the top of the north side of the building but went down when one wing clipped the south edge, Breckenridge said.
"It sounded really loud," said Cameron Quetone, an employee at Ozzie's Diner. "We heard the engine stop and then he just nicked the corner of the building."
Wilde said it was her first trip to Max Westheimer.
"We just decided to have coffee and watch the planes come in. I never expected anything like this," Wilde said.
Flight instructor Parker Ferguson, who saw the plane go down, was the first one to reach the wreckage.
"He was alive. He opened his eyes for about 15 seconds. Then he was gone," Ferguson said.
FAA records show the plane is registered to NDI Airplane LLC. The company's registered agent is Marion Charles Bauman, a Norman attorney.
Records show Spector received a commercial license with single- and multi-engine ratings in March 2004. He had had no prior accidents.
Spector has practiced medicine in Norman since 1974 and has held numerous offices on the Norman Regional Hospital staff, according to the hospital's Web site.
Raised in Beaumont, Texas, Spector attended Lamar University and Southwestern Medical School. He was board-certified in general and vascular surgery.
RIP
NORMAN — A longtime Norman surgeon was killed when the twin-engine plane he was piloting crashed Wednesday as it tried to land at Max Westheimer Airport.
Emergency workers look over the wreckage of a deadly plane crash Wednesday at Norman's Max Westheimer Airport. Authorities said Dr. Robert Spector was killed when the plane he was piloting crashed. Photo by Ty Russell
Dr. Robert Spector, 62, was arriving from Austin, Texas, when the crash occurred, Deputy Fire Chief James Fullingim said.
The Piper Seneca PA-34 clipped the terminal and nose-dived into the ground about 4:25 p.m., Fullingim said.
"The Norman Regional Hospital family is deeply saddened by the passing of Dr. Robert Spector," hospital President David Whitaker said.
"Dr. Spector was a highly regarded and respected surgeon on Norman Regional's medical staff. His compassionate caring will be greatly missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with Dr. Spector's family."
Officials with the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Safety Transportation Board remained on the scene Wednesday night investigating the crash. A cause of the accident had not been determined.
Blanchard residents Ty Breckenridge and Lenore Wilde were watching from Ozzie's Diner inside the airport terminal as the plane came in.
Breckenridge said the plane was flying through a crosswind when it tipped right and struck the tarmac with its nose wheel.
"Then the right wheel hit and bounced him back up. It looked like he tried to give it full throttle to bank and climb back up but he didn't make it," Breckenridge said.
The plane cleared the top of the north side of the building but went down when one wing clipped the south edge, Breckenridge said.
"It sounded really loud," said Cameron Quetone, an employee at Ozzie's Diner. "We heard the engine stop and then he just nicked the corner of the building."
Wilde said it was her first trip to Max Westheimer.
"We just decided to have coffee and watch the planes come in. I never expected anything like this," Wilde said.
Flight instructor Parker Ferguson, who saw the plane go down, was the first one to reach the wreckage.
"He was alive. He opened his eyes for about 15 seconds. Then he was gone," Ferguson said.
FAA records show the plane is registered to NDI Airplane LLC. The company's registered agent is Marion Charles Bauman, a Norman attorney.
Records show Spector received a commercial license with single- and multi-engine ratings in March 2004. He had had no prior accidents.
Spector has practiced medicine in Norman since 1974 and has held numerous offices on the Norman Regional Hospital staff, according to the hospital's Web site.
Raised in Beaumont, Texas, Spector attended Lamar University and Southwestern Medical School. He was board-certified in general and vascular surgery.
RIP