MIRAMAR, Fla. – Friends are remembering the student pilot and flight instructor who died when their plane crashed into a Miramar backyard Monday morning.
Police identified the two men Tuesday afternoon.
Miramar police spokesperson Tania Rues said instructor Antony Rolland Yen, 34 and student pilot Jordan Travis Hall, 32, died when the single-engine Aventura II plane crashed in a neighborhood just south of North Perry Airport at around 11:45 a.m.
Yen was last known to have lived in the Orlando area while Hall lived in West Park.
Brett Schneider, a friend and former student of Yen’s, said he considered him a mentor:
"Antony could best be described as a force in Aviation. He always has a positive and encouraging mindset. Always there for his students through everything. He had a special gift for teaching and his extreme passion and love for Aviation took his training to the next level. All he ever wanted to do was fly, it was in his blood. He loved sharing his passion with others through his flight instructing and air tours. The aviation community, especially the seaplane community, is very close knit and he will greatly be missed.”
Brett Schneider, friend and former student of Antony Yen
A friend of Hall’s, who identified himself as “Matt,” called him “remarkable.”
“Jordan was a remarkable friend, anytime I was passing through Miami he always made it known that I had a place to stay. We lived on opposite sides of the country but he would go out his way to check in via social or by text. I would always leave our (conversations) so inspired by all the things he was doing. As impossible as some of his ideas may have sounded to some, he always found a way to make them real. If Jordan said he was going to do something he manifested it. He was always full of ideas and new ventures. He owned and rebuilt these incredible boats, collected cars and even built this massive shark tank at his home. He even saved up to buy some land in the Bahamas that he named after his late grandmother. Jordan knew what brought him joy and knew how to live life to the fullest.”
Matt, friend of Jordan Hall
Jazmine Frisco, another friend of Hall’s, called him “courageous,” “ambitious” and passionate about flying.
“Anything that he wanted to do, he got it done,” Frisco said. “We talked about planes and him flying. I told him that I thought it was amazing. He did a YouTube video. He was always posting about planes. He was the kid that could light up a room.”
Airport personnel reported that the plane had been undergoing maintenance and had departed on a test flight shortly before it crashed.
Investigators believe the plane, classified as an experimental aircraft, was leaking fuel before it went down.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
Noon report:
Shortly before police identified the victims Tuesday, crews were at the scene removing the plane from the house.
Manyerenis Moreno and her 2-year-old son Tyler Flores were inside the home at the time. Moreno was back at the scene Tuesday.
“We still don’t know when we’re gonna have our house back,” she said.
Moreno said the crash still leaves her “speechless.”
“I’m alive and my baby is alive but we could’ve died,” Moreno said.
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