Cause of deadly Arizona plane crash revealed, deceased pilot identified

Officials in Arizona have disclosed that a landing gear malfunction led to the private jet owned by Vince Neil, the lead singer of Mötley Crüe, skidding off a runway and colliding with a parked private jet on Monday, resulting in the tragic death of its co-pilot. The incident at Scottsdale Airport also left three other individuals injured, including a second pilot, Neil’s girlfriend Rain Hannah, and her friend. A fifth person who was on the stationary jet declined medical attention. Fortunately, Neil was not present on the plane during the crash.

The City of Scottsdale released a statement on its website attributing the collision to the failure of the Learjet’s left main landing gear upon landing. Prompt response from airport operations staff and emergency personnel from Scottsdale Fire Station 609 within a minute of the incident helped manage the situation. Wheels from the Learjet were found approximately 100 yards away from the crash site, as reported by Fox 10 Phoenix.

The deceased co-pilot was identified as 78-year-old Joie Vitosky, certified as a flight engineer since 1978 and a pilot since 2019 according to FAA records. Vitosky, a former Marine Corps aviator who served in Vietnam, transitioned to flying Learjets after his military career. His ex-wife described him as passionate about flying and expressed that he would have been content to meet his end in such a manner.

Dramatic video footage captured the Learjet careening off the runway, crashing into the parked Gulfstream 200 with significant impact. The collision occurred at 2:39 p.m. local time, resulting in one fatality. The Learjet was traveling from Austin, Texas, and is registered to Chromed in Hollywood, Inc., a Wyoming-based company listing Neil as its director.

Hannah reportedly sustained five broken ribs in the crash, while the two passengers onboard had dogs that survived the ordeal. Rescue crews later separated the two aircraft, with images showing the severe damage to the Learjet’s cockpit area. Eyewitnesses recounted seeing the front landing gear collapse, causing the jet to veer off the runway and ultimately collide with the parked Gulfstream.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has initiated an investigation into the incident, with Scottsdale Airport reopening the runway at 10:38 p.m. on Monday. The aviation community extends its deepest condolences to all those affected by this tragic event.