Howard Lee Joe, 60, lost his life in a terrible incident that happened close to a lakeside resort in Buford, Georgia, when the single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza plane he was operating crashed and caught fire. At around 5:15 p.m., an accident happened on Lanier Islands Parkway close to Pine Cone Drive. Unsettling footage showed the aftermath, with the aircraft completely destroyed by flames and billowing clouds of smoke.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office attested to the fact that Howard Lee Joe was the only person on board. According to FlightAware flight data, Joe took off from DeKalb-Peachtree Airport around fifteen minutes prior to the incident, with Gainesville, Georgia, just a few miles away, as his intended destination.
The well-regarded 4-star Lanier Legacy Islands Lodge, which features golf, a marina, and a poolside bar, was located across the water from the crash site. Nestled in the Georgian woods, the resort offers a variety of outdoor activities along with a “warm Southern welcome.”
According to records, Joe was the owner of two other licensed aircraft: a 1980 Beechcraft Bonanza F33A and a 2006 Mooney M20R. He was flying a six-seater, single-engine Bonanza G36, which has an amazing history of continuous manufacture dating back to 1947.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are conducting investigations because the reason of the incident is still unknown. The circumstances surrounding this unfortunate tragedy will be investigated by the aviation authorities to see if any malfunctions or other causes played a role in the disaster.