We Are Deeply Saddened By The Death Of Vicki Cruse At An Air Show Accident On August 22, 2009

Pictures From A Day Of Flying At Pine Mountain Lake

Vicki, Bill and Wayne compare notes.

Vicki Cruse was an outstanding pilot who genuinely cared about people and aviation. She will be greatly missed by all who knew her. Most people who are afraid to fly deal with that fear by avoiding airplanes. Not Vicki. She faced her fears head-on and overcame them so dramatically, her story belongs in the history of 21st century aviation. We at Lightspeed Aviation were so proud that she chose to be associated with us. Hearing Vicki Tell Her Own Story We'd heard about Vicki Cruse because she earned the title of U.S. National Aerobatics Champion in 2007. But most of us at Lightspeed met her in person for the first time at a photo and video shoot in March of 2008. Vicki flew to Pine Mountain Lake in her Edge 540 where she joined pilots Bill Stein, Wayne Handley and Kevin Eldredge. We interviewed each each of them about their flying story (and why they liked our Zulu headset--the whole point of the shoot). We knew the details of Vicki's story but when she sat down and told it for the camera, it was amazing to hear. Back in 1992 she successfully earned her pilot's license, but she never felt confident about flying. Too many things could go wrong in the air and she was afraid she wouldn't know what to do. At this point many people would have accepted that they were afraid of flying and avoided it. But at a friend's suggestion Vicki took a course in Emergency Maneuver Training Course. It turned out Vicki had a talent for aerobatic maneuvers and within a few years she entered her first aerobatic competition. Vicki had many accomplishments in the air and on the ground, including serving as President of the International Aerobatics Club. You can read more about Vicki on the IAC's official site. Below is the video made with footage shot that day at Pine Mt. Lake.