Pilot dies after crash during flight to spread his father's ashes

By Daniel Uria , UPI A man died a day after sustaining injuries in a plane crash while spreading his father's ashes in Massachusetts on ...

By Daniel Uria, UPI

A man died a day after sustaining injuries in a plane crash while spreading his father's ashes in Massachusetts on Friday.

Scott Landis, 34, died at Massachusetts General Hospital on Saturday after he and his brother Patrick Landis, 29, were aboard a small single-propeller plane as they set out to spread the ashes of their father, who died of lung cancer earlier this month.

Scott Landis, who was on leave from the Army National Guard and had previously flown military Blackhawk helicopters, was piloting the plane when witnesses said it began sputtering before crashing into a pond near the runway at Cranland Airport in Hanson.

Peter Oakley, the owner of Cranland Airport said the Aeronca 7AC Champion plane's engine failed during takeoff.

Patrick Landis' aunt, Ann McLaughlin, said he was in surgery at Tufts Medical Center in Boston on Saturday and a hospital spokeswoman said he was in critical condition, The Boston Globe reported.

National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Eric Weiss said investigators were headed to Hanson and a preliminary report on the crash will be released in seven to 10 days.

The Federal Aviation Administration is also investigating the crash.