veterans

 

 

Tue
20
Nov

Colleagues remember beloved pilot

Article Image Alt Text

Savanna Gregg/The Highlander
Burnet pilot Cowden Ward Jr. gives the high sign from his P-51 Mustang “Pecos Bill” to the 2018 Bluebonnet Airsho on Saturday, Sept. 8. Ward was a fan favorite at the Airsho and founder of Freedom Flyers, which honors veterans by giving them rides in vintage aircraft. He and passenger Vincent Losada were killed Saturday, Nov. 17, when Pecos Bill crashed at a Fredericksburg apartment complex

 

 

 

 

 

By Savanna Gregg

Staff Writer

The Highlander

Tue
20
Nov

Vintage aircraft crashes, killing 2; Pilot remembered for performing at Airsho, helping veterans

Article Image Alt Text

Jennifer Robison/The Highlander
Pilot Cowden Ward Jr. takes flight in his P-51 Mustang "Pecos Bill" at the 2017 Bluebonnet Airsho in Burnet. Ward and a passenger, World War II veteran Vincent Losada, 93, of San Antonio, were killed when the vintage airplane crashed in Fredericksburg while taking part in a re-enactment flight on Saturday, Nov. 17.

 

 

 

 

By Richard Zowie

Staff Writer

The Highlander

A Burnet resident and founder of Pecos Bill P-51 Freedom Flyers died Nov. 17 in Fredericksburg when his P-51 airplane crashed near an apartment complex on the tourist town's east side.

According to AV Web, Cowden Ward Jr. was flying the vintage World War II plane in a reenactment flight and was believed to have had a passenger who was a World War II pilot. Both he and passenger Vincent Losada, 93, of San Antonio, were killed.

The crash occurred around 3:16 p.m. on Saturday at Friendship Place Apartments, at 707 South Creek Street in Fredericksburg. Fredericksburg Fire EMS, Fredericksburg Police Department, Gillespie County Sheriff’s Department, and Texas Department of Public Safety were dispatched.

According to a City of Fredericksburg press release, no bystanders were injured, and residents of the apartments were later allowed back into the complex.

Subscribe to RSS - veterans