A California airshow was cut short on Sunday when longtime aerobatic pilot Eddie Andreini crashed in his modified “Super” Stearman while attempting an inverted cut-the-ribbon pass. The vintage blue-and-silver biplane hit the ground and caught fire in front of the crowd, killing the 77-year-old.
Andreini, an experienced aerobatics pilot who had performed in nearly 1,000 airshows, had been flying his usual routine at the Thunder Over Solano show at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield.
Reports said the weather was good with winds of 10 to 15 knots. The 1944 Stearman crashed in a field away from spectators at about 2:05 p.m. local time and immediately caught fire, sending a large plume of black smoke into the sky.
The FAA and NTSB are investigating.
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