Longtime pilot killed in suburban plane crash near homes ID'd: 'A true hero'

UNINCORPORATED DEERFIELD, Ill. (WLS) -- A pilot was killed in a small plane crash behind townhomes in unincorporated Deerfield on Wednesday night, the Lake County Sheriff's Office said.

The crash occurred at about 9:45 p.m. in the 800-block of Swallow Street.

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Authorities said the 75-year-old Mount Prospect man, Chester Wojnicki, who was piloting the craft was the only person onboard when the Cessna T210 departed from Dane County Regional Airport, headed to Chicago Executive Airport in Wheeling, before it crashed.

"We have an altitude alert. Check the altitude immediately!! Executive altimeter 3004. Advise if you need any assistance," an air traffic controller at Chicago Executive Airport told the pilot.

"Climbing back," Wojnicki responded.

That was one of the last communications between the control tower and Wojnicki. The 75-year-old never radioing for help.

Neighbors said the pilot purposefully steered away from the homes as the plane went down and consider him a hero.

"He's a true hero. Because if he hit the building, the townhouses are all connected," witness Victoria Marinescu said. "There could be fire and it will go up like a match. He saved a lot of lives."

Wojnicki spoke to ABC7 in 2009 in the aftermath of a crash in West Virginia that killed six area residents. He was also a well liked member of Chicago Executive's pilot association

"I saw him Tuesday night. We had our civil air patrol meeting at the airport. I was sitting right next to him," friend Robert Mark said. "He was in good spirits and Chester usually is in good spirits...He had a really great sense of humor. And I think that's one of the things we're going to miss the most about him."

Witnesses said the plane struck the roof area of one of the townhomes as it plummeted to the ground.

"We were working on the car in the garage and we saw sort of the lights coming in," witness Mitchell Furiett said. "Then we started hearing the trees, the tops of the trees getting hit. And then we saw it come in and go straight down. We knew it was a plane crash right away."

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"I have very close family friends are two homes from where the plane landed right behind; so, I'm just extremely grateful it didn't crash into the house and kill anybody," neighborhood resident Stacey Sachs said.

The Lake County Coroner's Office said Wojnicki died from blunt force injuries.

Later Thursday, investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board along with the Federal Aviation Administration are expected to begin their investigation.

Local officials said the pilot did not appear to make any distress calls before the plane went down.

"However, they're gonna go through that aircraft," Lake County Sheriff's Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said. "They're gonna look to see if they can determine if they were mechanical issues with the aircraft. They'll look at to see if that was a factor. It could've been a medical emergency, as well. There's a lot on the table right now. Nothing's been ruled in and nothing has been ruled out."

No one on the ground was hurt, the sheriff's office said. There was a small gas leak but no major damage to any of the townhomes.