From The Herald Times: Bloomington businessman seriously hurt when the small plane he was piloting crashed in Muncie on April 1 has died from his injuries.
Craig Allen Richards , 65, was hospitalized in critical condition and died at IU Health Hospice House on April 20. He and his son owned and operated the Jersey Mike’s restaurant in Bloomington and one in Muncie.
Richards, the sole occupant of the Piper PA-28 Cherokee, left the Monroe County Airport at 9:37 a.m., and less than an hour later, while approaching a runway to land, the plane crashed just west of the Muncie airport next to the Cardinal Greenway.
The initial FAA report said the plane was descending and on track to land, lined up with the final approach course, before drifting right of the runway. The plane then made a climbing right turn, the report said, making two full right-hand circles while increasing altitude. The plane then “descended, climbed, and then descended a final time” before crashing. Richards had a private pilot certificate and instrument rating to fly a single-engine aircraft.
His obituary said a private funeral service will be held at a later date and asked that donations in Richards’ memory be made to Pets Alive or Hospice House in Bloomington.
