Four, Including The Inventor Of The Dropped Celing, Are Killed

Two pilots and two passengers were killed Monday afternoon when a Mitsubishi MU-2B went down on approach to Lorain County Airport in Ohio. Among those killed was 89-year-old Donald Brown of Vermillion, Ohio.  In 1961, Brown received a patent for the dropped ceiling that is nearly ubiquitous in schools and businesses. His wife Shirley and the two pilots on board were also lost.

According to Flight Aware, the aircraft, registered to Mitts Corp. in Gainesville, Florida, had departed Gainesville at 1110 Monday. The Browns had been visiting their son in Florida, and the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that they spent a good deal of time in the state. The Ohio State Highway Patrol said the aircraft was approaching Lorain County Airport (KLPR) just after 1400 when the accident occurred. The paper reported that the same aircraft had operated in and out of KLPR multiple times in the past three months.

Witnesses said there were no apparent mechanical problems with the plane, but that it came out of the clouds banking about 90 degrees and impacted the ground. One person was thrown clear of the wreckage.

Along with the Browns, pilots John Mengelson, 46, of Florahome, FL, and Wesley Roemer, 30, of Gainesville, FL, were also killed. Both were employed by Kenn-Air, the parent company of Mitts Corp. Kenn-Air is owned by the Brown's son Kenneth Brown. The company operates out of Gainesville Regional Airport in central Florida.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov