2006 New York City Cirrus SR20 crash
On October 11, 2006, a Cirrus SR20 aircraft crashed into the Belaire Apartments in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City, at about 2:42 p.m. EDT (18:42 UTC). The aircraft struck the north side of the building, causing a fire in several apartments, that was extinguished within two hours.
The Belaire building after the fire caused by the crash was extinguished | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | October 11, 2006 |
| Summary | Controlled flight into building |
| Site | Belaire Apartments, Manhattan, New York City 40.76616°N 73.95221°W |
| Total fatalities | 2 |
| Total injuries | 21 |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Cirrus SR20 |
| Operator | Private |
| Registration | N929CD |
| Flight origin | Teterboro Airport Teterboro, New Jersey |
| Occupants | 2 |
| Fatalities | 2 |
| Survivors | 0 |
| Ground casualties | |
| Ground fatalities | 0 |
| Ground injuries | 21 (including 11 firefighters) |
Both people aboard the aircraft were killed in the accident: New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle and his certificated flight instructor Tyler Stanger. Twenty-one people were injured, including eleven firefighters. An apartment resident, Ilana Benhuri, who lived in the building with her husband, was hospitalized for a month with severe burns incurred when the post-impact fire engulfed her apartment.
The Cirrus SR20 aircraft, tail number N929CD, was owned by Lidle. On May 1, 2007, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) stated that the probable cause of the crash was pilot error. The NTSB was unable to determine which person was flying the aircraft at the time of the crash.