Holiday Ride Turns Tragic For Brothers

One brother was killed and another critically injured Monday afternoon when their vintage 1940 PT-17 Stearman biplane (file photos of type, at right and below) went down near Hicks Field, northwest of Fort Worth, TX.

Pilot Raymond Kraft, of Melbourne, FL was killed in the accident. According to the Fort Worth Star Telegram, he was visiting his brother, Robert, for the holidays when they decided to go for a ride in Robert's Stearman.

According to witnesses -- including family members who saw the accident -- the brothers had just completed a series of aerobatic maneuvers and was lifting off after performing a touch-and-go when the aircraft went down.

The aircraft was turning to the left when it suddenly took a "nose-down position," according to Tarrant County Chief Deputy Jay Six, and impacted the ground approximately 250 yards east of the airfield.

Robert Kraft based the Stearman at the field.

According to the Star-Telegram, Raymond Kraft worked for New Piper Aircraft in Vero Beach, FL. Robert Kraft -- who was seriously injured in the accident -- recently retired from Fort Worth-based American Airlines.

Six told the newspaper the plane the brothers were flying was in "pristine condition."

"It was a beautiful, well-maintained aircraft with military markings," Six said. "[Robert Kraft] obviously took a lot of pride in it."

FAA and NTSB investigators are looking into the cause of the accident.

********************************************************************************

IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 67195        Make/Model: PT17      Description: BOEING STEARMAN A75N1 PT17
  Date: 12/26/2005     Time: 2138

  Event Type: Accident   Highest Injury: Fatal     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Destroyed

LOCATION
  City: FORT WORTH   State: TX   Country: US

DESCRIPTION
  ACFT CRASHED INTO A FIELD UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES, THERE WERE TWO  PERSONS ON BOARD, ONE WAS FATALLY INJURIED AND ONE WAS SERIOUSLY INJURIED,  THE ACFT WAS DESTROYED, HICKS FIELD, FORT WORTH, TX

INJURY DATA      Total Fatal:   1
                 # Crew:   2     Fat:   1     Ser:   1     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Pass:   0     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Grnd:         Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   

WEATHER: NOT REPORTED

OTHER DATA

  Departed: HICKS, FORT WORTH, T        Dep Date:    Dep. Time:     
  Destination: HICKS FORT WORTH,TX      Flt Plan:              Wx Briefing: 
  Last Radio Cont: 
  Last Clearance: 

  FAA FSDO: FORT WORTH, TX  (SW19)                Entry date: 12/27/2005

FMI: www.ntsb.gov