The Cincinnati Post from Cincinnati, Ohio • 6

6A The Ron Thufday Jura 1 2006 JBipyou reached bottom of the glass? it your last! Do you want to quit or cut down on your drinking i your family and friends complain about your drinking? I' Do you fool bad or guilty about your drinking? Help Through Clinical Research! Physcian's Cara and Counseling at No Cost To Youl Call Us To Find Out Morel Tri-State Tobacco and Alcohol Research Center All Inquiries Art Kept Strictly Confidential Orcamusiloca 1 1 y)atl5i135 5 8r7j1 f79 Photos by JOE MUNSOtyThe Post A team of investigators checked out the plane crash site In Fort Thomas Ky this morning Federal probe of fatal crash may begin today 15: Off ALL OUTDOOR AND Home Furnishings (Pitmmtoff of original pile jnckithtall In ttock mtd custom not fccfcdb custom titewiq) vVy 'vw: I 9 off from Lunken Airport just across the Ohio River from Fort Thomas about 6 pm according to Airport Manager Fred Ander-ton He said Meyer had a friend drive him to the airport from Xenia to pick up his plane after having its auto pilot worked on at an avionics shop there Anderton said Meyer had just taken off to fly home and was headed north when he called the Lunken control tower Somewhere over Blue Ash Meyer called Lunken back and said he wanted to return there Anderton said An air traffic controller approved his landing but then lost contact with Meyer The black-tan-and-white aircraft sheared the tops of a few trees before dropping into the spacious backyard of the Hall family estate one of the few areas of green space in the densely populated Campbell County hilltop city This plane stopped between a large brick home on the property and a guest house in the backyard About 50 feet from the fuselage the engine propeller still attached lay next to a tree trunk it had been hurled into leaving a gash across the bark six feet off the ground About 150 feet from the wreckage lay a blanket that had covered Meyer who was ejected from the cockpit at impact He was pronounced dead at the scene By SMIy Whitehead Post staff reporter Federal transportation investigators today are expected to begin picking through the wreckage of a plane that crashed in Fort Thomas Tuesday evening killing an Ohio man who was piloting the craft and narrowly missing houses in the residential neighborhood The crash killed Greene County business owner John Meyer 79 He was thrown from his six-seater Cessna when it crash-landed in the yard of a 9-acre estate at 445 Rossford Ave about 6:15 pm Louisville Federal Aviation Administration office Safety Inspector Jim Siegman arrived at the crash site early Wednesday morning The FAA often does early investigative work of a crash before investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board arrive at the scene Wednesday small orange flags placed by Fort Thomas police marked dozens of pieces of wreckage at die crash site Siegman spent the day walking the debris field which covered about 300 feet documenting potential evidence of the crash The cause of the accident remains undetermined is out here documenting everything photographing and plotting" said Fort Thomas Police Lt Mark Dill whose department secured the scene for federal investigators' contacted -j ft r- '7-'' Florence DAYTON 'y rw Montgomery 5132715567 3595258016 9373201 WE offer furniture grade custom cabinetry Safety Inspector Jim Siegman of the Louisville Ky FAA office makes a phone call at the crash site insurance company too and organizing the removal when Only NTSB officials can Release die wreckage for removal Agency spokesman Paul Schlamm said the on-site team came from Chicago and will include an agency inspector a representative of'Cessna Aircraft and other technical experts Schlamm said a preliminary report of the crash will be posted in about a week on the web site Federal inspectors refused to comment on the crash Wednesday The single-engine plane took Pilot: A friend had urged that Meyer give up flying Holmes and kept up with him through the years "He was a standout person and quite success-fill in said Cobb "He was very gregarious outgoing and Meyer who grew up in Erlanger and lived there until moving to Xenia in 1966 served in the US Navy during World War II After the war he sold house siding and prefabricated garages before settling into the car business starting with a used car lot in Covington He later operated a Volkswagen dealership in Xenia and after selling that business to Richardson opened another VW dealership in Dayton and then operated Eastgate Ford in Dayton "John invested in many other businesses owned a lot of things and became a said Richardson "He recently bought the Greene County Country Club because he loved Meyer was the owner of Botewerks LLC of Monticello Ky a houseboat manufacturer and owned condominium property in Dayton and property in Sarasota Fla He also was a philanthropist who had contributed funds to buy radio equipment for the Campbell County Ky Emergency Mobile Command Center "He was a very generous said John Dennis Meyer who noted that his uncle had donated thousands of dollars to the Kentucky District 7 Amateur Radio Emergency Team Inc The John and Betty Meyer Family Foundation made donations to churches and provided college scholarships John Dennis Meyer said his uncle provided vans for the transportation needs of Greene County senior citizens and handicapped people and funded dental work for physically challenged people wife Betty Jo died about 10 years ago Their son Johnny died at age 39 and two daughters Patty and Marcia survive Meyer remarried about three years ago "He had a magnetic said Richardson "He led a colorful FromlA had this premonition just a personal said Richardson "I said just getting too old One of these days something is going to happen and going to But not so sure he plane went down shortly after he took off from Lunken Airport in Cincinnati across the Ohio River from the crash site in Fort Thomas "He went to Lunken to get his plane after having the auto pilot worked on said Richardson companion of five years Ellie Smith said Meyer had radioed the control tower after taking off that his plane was not running properly and "he was going to turn around and come Richardson said The cause of the crash been determined nephew John Dennis Meyer said his unde was a good pilot "Mr Meyer kept his license current by taking the required FAA physical examinations and having his plane inspected according to FAA the younger Meyer said in a statement he read Tuesday night at the Fort Thomas police station "He was a good pilot as I have flown with him many times and witnessed his love and dedication for the sky He was a thorough and competent Meyer was at the 60th anniversary of his Holmes graduating class last year "He attended every reunion we had and had a lot of said Mary Ann Unkraut of Edgewood Ky a classmate "He went on to do so much with his life and he was always so friendly so nice with everyone "He was a good looking man who liked to dance He was such a likeable person His death is a real James Cobb Jr a retired attorney who practiced in Covington and lives in Anderson Township Ohio was a classmate of Meyer at S' a' il 4 I AVENUES- 1 -SELECTED MERCHANDISE ONLY NOT ALL DEPARTMENTS INCLUDED INSALE THIS SALE REPRESENTS PERCENTAGE OFF ORIGMtt PRICES INTERMEDIATE MARKDOWNS NAY HAVE OCCURRED PRIOR TO THIS SALE NO ADJUSTMENTS TO PRIOR PURCHASES EXCLUDES OFF 5TH STORES SALE ENDS JUNE ZOtZOqS ID) The Cincinnati Your hometown newspaper Call 651-4500 and subscribe OST ii s- 1 m- HFTH AND RACE STTSTS ONCWNMT (513) 421-6800 1 A.