![The Piper Cherokee that crashed September 28, 2022, in Pennsylvania was largely destroyed in a postcrash fire. [Credit: NTSB]](https://flyingmag1.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/10/220807_mcpherson_wreckage.jpg?width=1809&height=1013)
A New Jersey flight instructor who had his certificate pulled for a “lack of demonstrated competence” but continued to teach has pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and other charges stemming from a 2022 crash that killed a flight student.
According to LehighValleyLive.com in Pennsylvania, 37-year-old Philip Everton McPherson II, 37, pleaded guilty to 43 of the 44 charges he faced in exchange for the government agreeing to withdraw one count of conspiracy to defraud the FAA. These counts stem from serving as an airman without a valid certificate.
Earlier this month the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concluded the investigation into the September 2022 crash involving McPherson and Keith Kozel, 49, a student pilot. More than a year before the accident, McPherson’s commercial and CFI certificates were surrendered to the FAA because he had failed a 44709 ride, reexamination for airman privileges.
The accident happened on September 28, when McPherson and Kozel were flying a Piper PA-28-140 belonging to Pro Flite Aero in Easton, Pennsylvania. The indictment notes that Nouman Saleem, the owner of the flight school, was aware that McPherson did not have a valid certificate.
Earlier this year Saleem was also indicted and pleaded guilty to conspiracy and obstruction charges, and agreed to pay $101,528 in restitution to the flight students who flew with McPherson although he was not legally able to act as an instructor.
The Details
In 2024 FLYING obtained a copy of the original 11-page indictment, which noted that in 2021the FAA received a hotline complaint about McPherson’s alleged poor airmanship that included going off the runway on two different occasions while flying with a student, with both events resulting in substantial damage to the aircraft.
The first event was on November 18, 2020, when, during the second attempt to land a Cessna 172 in a gusting crosswind, the aircraft went off the side of the runway. The nosewheel failed, and the aircraft flipped onto its back. The winds near the site were reported as 13 knots gusting to 25.
The second event came on March 6, 2021, but a report was not filed in the NTSB accident files.
The indictment notes the FAA made several attempts to reach McPherson—first by letter, then by telephone—as part of its investigation to set up a reexamination ride. When he finally did the reexamination flight with the agency, he botched a go-around, and the FAA safety inspector had to take the controls to prevent a crash, per the indictment.
After surrendering his commercial and CFI tickets, McPherson was granted a temporary certificate that allowed him to fly by himself or with another instructor in order to gain the skills necessary to regain his certifications. The temporary certificate carries this warning: “Carrying of Passengers Prohibited.”
McPherson did not request another reexamination ride, nor did he ask for an extension of the temporary certificate, which expired on November 8, 2021. However, he continued to serve as a flight instructor carrying passengers.
The indictment includes two pages with the initials of students and dates of flights with McPherson acting as instructor between October 2021, and September 2022. He faces an additional 40 counts of serving as an airman without a certificate, as he continued to fly with passengers as an instructor between those dates. The indictment states McPherson “acted with gross negligence because he knew that he was not competent to safely fly an aircraft as the pilot in command.”
According to the indictment, his commercial pilot and instructor certificates were surrendered to the FAA in October 2021 after he failed the reexamination ride.
FLYING’s attempts to contact the flight school for comment in 2024 and today were unsuccessful.
The Accident
On September 28, 2022, at about 1:40 p.m. EDT, McPherson and Kozel were attempting to take off from Allentown Queen City Municipal Airport (KXLL) in Pennsylvania. According to the NTSB report, McPherson had approximately 1,350 hours of experience at the time of the accident, and Kozel had 51. The purpose of the flight was to go to a nearby tower-controlled airport.
McPherson asked Kozel to perform a soft-field takeoff, but according to the report, “during the takeoff, the airplane had not become airborne by the time (McPherson) felt it should, and he prompted the student to increase the airplane’s pitch attitude, and it became airborne. The student then reduced pitch to remain in ground effect but settled briefly back onto the runway before reestablishing flight in ground effect.”
![Overhead view of the accident flight path [Credit: NTSB]](https://flyingmag1.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/10/McPherson-crash-Flight-Path.jpeg?width=1024&height=660)
Ground effect is when the airplane flies approximately one wingspan over the runway. This technique is used for soft fields to keep the aircraft from getting stuck in surfaces such as mud or snow. The pilot flies the aircraft a wingspan above the surface, allowing it to build enough airspeed to safely climb out.
“The airplane seemed to take longer to accelerate to its best angle of climb speed (VX), which [McPherson] attributed to the student’s initial slightly high pitch attitude,” the NTSB report stated. “When the airplane reached VX, the instructor assumed control of the airplane and maintained airspeed. He stated that the airplane was laboring in its climb, narrowly cleared the trees off the departure end of the runway, and was unable to climb thereafter. Although the engine was running, it was ‘noticeably weak.’
“The instructor raised the flaps and continued to fly the airplane at VX and was still not able to climb. He noted that the airplane was about 200 feet above the ground and approaching rising terrain. The instructor attempted to locate an area to land but was unable to locate a suitable landing area, and the airplane descended into trees.”
The recorded ADS-B data included in the NTSB report shows the airplane’s track continued approximately 0.8 miles on runway heading, passing over what appear to be athletic fields then making a slight left turn before the track ends. The aircraft came down in trees near homes, where the aircraft caught fire.
A homeowner helped McPherson escape, but the fire was too intense to rescue Kozel. Investigators noted that the fire damage made it difficult to study the aircraft engine components as part of the investigation. However, the NTSB noted that at the time of the accident the recorded temperature and dew point were conducive to the development of serious icing at glide power and were between the ranges for icing at glide and cruise power and serious icing at cruise power.
The NTSB’s official probable cause for the accident is listed as a “partial loss of engine power for undetermined reasons.”
McPherson was arrested at his home on August 1, 2024. He pleaded not guilty and posted bond.
In February a grand jury indicted McPherson and Saleem, the flight school owner, on charges of conspiracy and wire fraud. According to local media reports, Saleem knew that McPherson had failed that 44709 ride but let him instruct anyway.
According to the indictment, McPherson instructed 79 hours, taking approximately $101,527.93 from student pilots. As McPherson lacked a valid certificate, the hours logged became invalid.
Local media reports also noted that earlier this year Saleem pleaded guilty to the charges and agreed to pay restitution to the students.
McPherson faces a maximum of 153 years in prison. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for January 17
The complete NTSB report can be found below:
