Air show performer, aerobatics instructor and motivational speaker Nancy Lynn died Oct. 15 from injuries suffered in an airplane crash during an air show.
She was 50 years old.
Lynn was performing in her Extra 300L at Culpeper Air Fest at Culpeper Regional Airport in Virginia Oct. 14 when, during a low pass, the wing tip of her aircraft hit the ground. The wing broke off and the aircraft flipped onto its back and exploded into flames.
Lynn’s 18-year-old son, Peter Muntean, was narrating his mother’s performance when the accident occurred.
Muntean and Culpeper County Regional Airport Manager Frank Bossio raced to the flaming aircraft. Bossio received second degree burns to his hands during his attempts to reach Lynn.
Firefighters were able to cut Lynn free and Muntean was able to talk to his mother before she was airlifted to a Charlottesville hospital with burns over 90% of her body. She died a few hours later.
In addition to being a performer, Lynn also provided aerobatics instruction. According to information on her website, LynnAviation.com, she had more than 3,000 hours of dual given at her school at Maryland’s Bay Bridge Airport (W29).
Lynn was born and raised in Ohio. After graduating from Dennison University she went to work for Procter and Gamble. In the 1980s she became one of the first women to be a plant manager for the company. She also got her first taste of aviation and liked it so much, especially aerobatics, that she quit her job and used her pension fund to buy her first aerobatic airplane.
She quickly became a favorite on the air show circuit. She often wore tennis shoes because she said they allowed her to feel the rudder pedals better.
She was proceeded in death by her husband, Scott Muntean, who died of brain cancer in 2000. In addition, her business partner Mark Damisch died in a crash in October 2003 while flying Lynn’s aircraft.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to The Pete Muntean Education Fund, c/o Bank Annapolis, 1000 Bestgate Road, Suite 400, Annapolis, Md., 21401.
The cause of the accident is under investigation. This was the first crash in the 10-year history of the air show.