The pilot who died in a Bangor crash had previously flown across the Atlantic Ocean in a small plane.
Luigi Accusani, 74, of Italy, died Friday at the Bangor International Airport while attempting to land in a single-engine Cessna.
A 48-second video of the crash on Friday taken by a 9-year-old Jaxon Cook, of Vassalboro, shows the plane landing at the airport before ascending again in an arcing path and crashing.
Accusani had crossed the Atlantic Ocean at least two other times in small planes, in 2023 and 2024, according to Italian newspapers. Both times he flew with another pilot, taking a similar route to his fateful journey.
He was the “North Atlantic navigation expert,” for Gianni Golinelli when they flew from Mexico to Italy in 2024, according to Italian newspaper il Resto del Carlino.
The pair started in Cozumel, Mexico, on May 28, 2024, and made stops across the United States, with the final American stop in New York. They then flew to Goose Bay, Labrador, to Narasuaq, Greenland, to Reykjavik, Iceland, and then Wick, Scotland, before landing in Monteveglio, Italy.
Accusani made similar stops this month but instead flew west. Flight trackers reported seeing the plane near Monteveglio, Italy and his first documented landing was in France, according to online flight records. The plane flew from Wick, Scotland, to Reykjavik, Iceland, to Narasuaq, Greenland to Goose Bay, Labrador before the flight to Bangor on Friday.
In 2023, Accusani flew with Giorgio Azzalin from Florida to Turin, Italy. During the five-day flight they had hours without sun and ran the risk of ice on the wings, according to Italian newspaper Prima il Canavese.
Friends and fellow pilots shared their admiration for Accusani on Facebook in the days after his death. One called Accusani “perhaps one of the most extraordinary Italian aviators,” of the time.
Golinelli said Accusani will be flying with him “always,” in the comments of the post.
Accusani won an Italian fuel efficiency race in May 2018, traveling in a 500-mile triangle while using the lowest amount of fuel, according to an Italian aviation magazine, Club Aviazione Popolare.
His YouTube page documents his landings in snow covered mountains.
Accusani’s death is believed to be the first civilian fatality recorded at the Bangor International Airport.
