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Highlands Today

UPDATE: Crash Victim Was British Photographer

Courtesy photo

Steven Fletcher

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Brad Dickerson

Published: January 26, 2009

Updated: 01/27/2009 11:09 am

SEBRING - The passenger of a light sport aviation aircraft who died Sunday morning after his plane crashed at the Sebring Regional Airport was a photographer from Peterborough, United Kingdom.

The plane, manufactured by German-based Remos Aircraft, was on exhibit at the U.S. Sport Aviation Expo being held at the Sebring airport, but Sunday morning the photo shoot Steven Fletcher was attempting was not part of the expo, said Robert Wood, expo chairman.

Two Remos aircraft with two photographers took off before the start of the day's events to do an aerial photography shoot, Wood said.

Remos was one of more than 170 vendors exhibiting at the expo.

"They had been on exhibit here at the expo, but the activity they were involved in was not part of the expo," Wood added.

The pilot has been identified as Mike Kostelac, of Virginia, according to Lt. Tim Lethbridge with the Highlands County Sheriff's Office. Kostelac was in serious condition Monday at a regional medical center.

Mike Willingham, the airport's executive director, said the National Transportation Safety Board arrived Monday morning and was in the process of going through the wreckage to determine what caused the accident.

The crash happened about 7:45 a.m., on the airport's south ramp. The plane went down shortly after takeoff.

"This accident had nothing to do with the expo," Willingham said Monday. "This could have happened anytime, anywhere."

There was also no preliminary report about what could have caused the crash, according to Willingham.
"At this point, we just don't know what happened," he said.

Fletcher maintained a Web site, www.av8images.com.

He was apparently covering the exhibition for a UK publication at the time of the accident.

"He was a very popular aviation photographer who was very well respected, experienced and known throughout the world of aviation," said Paul Hamblin, group editor-in-chief of Key Publishing. "Everyone is stunned and shocked and very sad as Steve was a popular guy and will be missed by everybody," according to The UK's Rutland & Stamford Mercury.

Highlands Today reporter Brad Dickerson can be reached at (863) 386-5838 or bdickerson@highlandstoday.com

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