Randy Joe Botts
1953-05-06 2010-01-15
Randy died on January 15, 2010 at the age of 56, from injuries sustained in an airplane crash in Mississippi.
HANCOCK COUNTY, MS (WLOX) - Hancock County Coroner Norma Stiglet says both victims, 56-year-old Randy Botts and 23-year-old Karl Smith, have undergone autopsies and died from multiple injuries due to blunt force.
Pieces of the 1989 RV-4 Single Engine plane are untouched as officials try to determine the cause of the fatal crash.
Hancock County Sheriff's Department Investigator Richard Fayard says, "We currently have a representative of FAA on scene at this time. They're back there doing their preliminary investigation. They have recovered several items of interest that they will be collecting."
Hancock County Sheriff's Department Investigator Richard Fayard says it was likely navigational equipment that was on board the amateur built plane that will help Federal Aviation Administration officials determine what caused the crash.
"We've been advised by the FAA that the insurance company will be in charge of the recovery of the air craft, and we'll be coordinating with them to get the debris removed from the wooded area," says Investigator Richard Fayard.
According to the FAA web site, 56-year-old Randy Botts of Perkinston was a certified private pilot. At the time of the crash he was testing his auto pilot feature.
https://www.wlox.com/story/11834499/investigation-continues-into-fatal-plane-crash/ Read the story here
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/74157312/randy-joe-botts Find the gravesite here
HANCOCK COUNTY, MS (WLOX) - Hancock County Coroner Norma Stiglet says both victims, 56-year-old Randy Botts and 23-year-old Karl Smith, have undergone autopsies and died from multiple injuries due to blunt force.
Pieces of the 1989 RV-4 Single Engine plane are untouched as officials try to determine the cause of the fatal crash.
Hancock County Sheriff's Department Investigator Richard Fayard says, "We currently have a representative of FAA on scene at this time. They're back there doing their preliminary investigation. They have recovered several items of interest that they will be collecting."
Hancock County Sheriff's Department Investigator Richard Fayard says it was likely navigational equipment that was on board the amateur built plane that will help Federal Aviation Administration officials determine what caused the crash.
"We've been advised by the FAA that the insurance company will be in charge of the recovery of the air craft, and we'll be coordinating with them to get the debris removed from the wooded area," says Investigator Richard Fayard.
According to the FAA web site, 56-year-old Randy Botts of Perkinston was a certified private pilot. At the time of the crash he was testing his auto pilot feature.
https://www.wlox.com/story/11834499/investigation-continues-into-fatal-plane-crash/ Read the story here
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/74157312/randy-joe-botts Find the gravesite here
Randy lived a block down the street from me and was one of my first friends when I moved to Madison starting 6th grade. We drifted apart to different circles of friends at West, but I always thought well of him and I was stunned when I learned of his plane crash several years ago. But it didn’t surprise me to learn he was a pilot and owned a homebuilt plane – we both had an interest in mechanical things at a young age and his profile in the Van Hise 9th grade yearbook mentioned he wanted to go into jet mechanics.
tribute by Steve IrwinRandy could always make you laugh, I remember attending a reunion and talking with him and teasing him about his "Louisianan" accent.
tribute by Connie Buss-Gille