Authorities have identified the pilot killed in a plane crash in Greenwood, Indiana, on Wednesday as Anh-Thu Nguyen, the founder of the Asian Women in Aerospace & Aviation organization and the 10th woman and first of Vietnamese descent to fly around the world solo.
Nguyen, 44, was alone in the airplane.
According to the AWAA website, Nguyen’s life began in Tuy-Hoa, Vietnam. The village did not have electricity or running water. She immigrated to America when she was 12.
Nguyen worked multiple jobs to pursue her education goals. She was valedictorian of her high school and ranked in the top 10 of her class at Purdue University. In 2015 she earned a Bachelor of Science in math, which was followed by a Master of Science in aeronautics and astronautics and a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from Georgia Tech.
In 2017 and 2023 she was one of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association’s distinguished CFIs. In 2018 Nguyen founded Asian Women in Aerospace & Aviation, created to encourage and empower Asian girls to pursue careers as pilots, aerospace engineers, and STEM professionals.
According to the AWAA website, the nonprofit organization has inspired over 25 million people. She founded Dragon Flight Training Academy in Pembroke, Florida, in 2018. Nguyen also became a Boeing 767 pilot for a major airline.
In 2024 Nguyen made her first solo trip around the world to gain attention for AWAA and inspire others. Wednesday’s crash occurred during the second attempt to do a solo around-the-world flight.
Nguyen had a pronounced social media presence, and her last post showed her in the cockpit of her 2005 Lancair IV-P preparing for the first leg of her epic journey.
“[This is] more than just a flight, OK?” she said. “This is a mission to inspire the next generation of Asian female pilots and aerospace engineering professionals.”
About the Crash
According to authorities in Indiana, Nguyen was on the second leg of the journey, en route from Indy South Greenwood Airport (KHFY) to Pennsylvania. Flightaware.com shows the flight terminated a few minutes after takeoff from KHFY.
According to a witness in an Indianapolis Star report, the Lancair’s engine was quiet as the aircraft spiraled down from the sky. It crashed on a small hill behind a gas station on Greenwood’s Main Street.
“There was no explosion, and there was no fire,” witness Frank William told the Star, adding that he told investigators when he arrived on the scene that he could smell the fuel but quickly realized the pilot did not survive.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will be investigating the accident.
