Paul Schlieben
PETERBOROUGH — A well-known Peterborough resident was killed in a plane crash Thursday afternoon in Lebanon.
Paul Schlieben, a retired software executive, philanthropist and volunteer, died when the Cessna 182 he was flying crashed shortly after takeoff at the Lebanon Municipal Airport.
Emergency crews responded to a call from the Federal Aviation Administration at 1:45 p.m. and found an intact plane engulfed in flames, Lebanon Fire Chief Chris Christopoulos Jr. said in a statement.
The chief said the plane “was heavily involved in fire in the grassy wetlands area on the east side of runway 36.” He said the fire was quickly extinguished and they found a single victim in the plane.
Lebanon police said investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board were due to arrive there this morning.
Schlieben was well-known by many in Peterborough, who are mourning his death today. Selectmen Chairman Barbara A. Miller said Schlieben was known throughout the town for his kindness and generosity.
“Paul really exemplified the American dream, because he built his business, it was successful and he sold it. And then he gave back. He made money and he gave back.”
Schlieben founded SoftLanding Systems Inc. of Peterborough in 1989 and sold it in 2006, according to IT Jungle, an online newsletter about the technology industry. The company specializes in software for mainframe computers.
Robert A. Hanson of Peterborough, a retired consultant who worked at Timken Co. in Keene, met Schlieben in the 1980s when their children attended Monadnock Community Daycare Center. They have been close friends ever since.
“Everybody loved him,” Hanson said this morning. “He treated his employees really well, and was just tremendous in the way he worked for the community.”
Schlieben and his wife, Joan, have been married 35 years and have two children, according to Hanson. A daughter, Jessica, is finishing up her college degree in Boston and is getting married next summer. Their son, Roy, just had a daughter less than a year ago and is in Thailand.
A Peterborough Rotary Club member, Schlieben started Take-Off and Grow in 2007, a program that offered Conval Regional High School students flight time credits in exchange for community service. Although the program was disbanded last year because of the cost, several students earned their pilot’s license. In return, they gave the town more than 2,000 hours of community service, according to Miller.
Schlieben also flew for Angel Flight Northeast, a volunteer pilot association that arranges free air transportation for charitable and medical needs. Hanson said Schlieben flew three or four flights a month for the group. “He’d fly people all over the country, literally,” Hanson said.
Miller said Schlieben was also planning a special Valentine’s Day flight next week as part of a Rotary Club auction fundraiser.
“It’s just a great life snuffed out too early,” she said. “It’s tragic.”
Edward J. Mattern, airport manager at Dillant-Hopkins Airport in North Swanzey, said Schlieben has rented a hangar there for a number of years. Mattern said Schlieben loved introducing young people to flying.
Mike Moriarty, airport maintenance and operations foreman, said Schlieben was well-liked by everybody at the airport. “He really gave a lot to the community,” Moriarty said. “He was really, really a very nice guy.”
Hanson said he had lunch with Schlieben Wednesday, and Schlieben told him he was flying his Cessna from Keene to Lebanon Thursday to have it serviced.
Hanson described Schlieben as “very outgoing” and said “he treated his employees really well” as the owner of SoftLanding. Hanson said Schlieben was renowned for his Christmas party monologues, and the gifts he would give to his employees.
Hanson said Schlieben would walk to Roy’s Market on Main Street every day to buy a paper for his wife, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease. He was an avid reader of the New York Times and his politics were “very liberal,” Hanson said with a chuckle.
He also liked woodworking and had a shop in his garage behind the house, Hanson said.
The Cessna 182 is a four-seater, single-engine plane that has been on the market for 55 years and is frequently used by flight-instructor schools, according to the company’s website.
The Valley News of Lebanon contributed to this report.
http://www.sentinelsource.com
LEBANON — A retired Peterborough man died in a plane crash at Lebanon Municipal Airport Thursday.
Paul Schlieben, a retired software executive, philanthropist and volunteer, died when the Cessna 182 he was flying crashed shortly after takeoff at the Lebanon Municipal Airport.
Emergency crews responded to a call from the Federal Aviation Administration at 1:45 p.m. and found an intact plane engulfed in flames, Lebanon Fire Chief Chris Christopoulos Jr. said in a statement.
The chief said the plane “was heavily involved in fire in the grassy wetlands area on the east side of runway 36.” He said the fire was quickly extinguished and they found a single victim in the plane.
Lebanon police said investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board were due to arrive there this morning.
Schlieben was well-known by many in Peterborough, who are mourning his death today. Selectmen Chairman Barbara A. Miller said Schlieben was known throughout the town for his kindness and generosity.
“Paul really exemplified the American dream, because he built his business, it was successful and he sold it. And then he gave back. He made money and he gave back.”
Schlieben founded SoftLanding Systems Inc. of Peterborough in 1989 and sold it in 2006, according to IT Jungle, an online newsletter about the technology industry. The company specializes in software for mainframe computers.
Robert A. Hanson of Peterborough, a retired consultant who worked at Timken Co. in Keene, met Schlieben in the 1980s when their children attended Monadnock Community Daycare Center. They have been close friends ever since.
“Everybody loved him,” Hanson said this morning. “He treated his employees really well, and was just tremendous in the way he worked for the community.”
Schlieben and his wife, Joan, have been married 35 years and have two children, according to Hanson. A daughter, Jessica, is finishing up her college degree in Boston and is getting married next summer. Their son, Roy, just had a daughter less than a year ago and is in Thailand.
A Peterborough Rotary Club member, Schlieben started Take-Off and Grow in 2007, a program that offered Conval Regional High School students flight time credits in exchange for community service. Although the program was disbanded last year because of the cost, several students earned their pilot’s license. In return, they gave the town more than 2,000 hours of community service, according to Miller.
Schlieben also flew for Angel Flight Northeast, a volunteer pilot association that arranges free air transportation for charitable and medical needs. Hanson said Schlieben flew three or four flights a month for the group. “He’d fly people all over the country, literally,” Hanson said.
Miller said Schlieben was also planning a special Valentine’s Day flight next week as part of a Rotary Club auction fundraiser.
“It’s just a great life snuffed out too early,” she said. “It’s tragic.”
Edward J. Mattern, airport manager at Dillant-Hopkins Airport in North Swanzey, said Schlieben has rented a hangar there for a number of years. Mattern said Schlieben loved introducing young people to flying.
Mike Moriarty, airport maintenance and operations foreman, said Schlieben was well-liked by everybody at the airport. “He really gave a lot to the community,” Moriarty said. “He was really, really a very nice guy.”
Hanson said he had lunch with Schlieben Wednesday, and Schlieben told him he was flying his Cessna from Keene to Lebanon Thursday to have it serviced.
Hanson described Schlieben as “very outgoing” and said “he treated his employees really well” as the owner of SoftLanding. Hanson said Schlieben was renowned for his Christmas party monologues, and the gifts he would give to his employees.
Hanson said Schlieben would walk to Roy’s Market on Main Street every day to buy a paper for his wife, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease. He was an avid reader of the New York Times and his politics were “very liberal,” Hanson said with a chuckle.
He also liked woodworking and had a shop in his garage behind the house, Hanson said.
The Cessna 182 is a four-seater, single-engine plane that has been on the market for 55 years and is frequently used by flight-instructor schools, according to the company’s website.
The Valley News of Lebanon contributed to this report.
http://www.sentinelsource.com
LEBANON — A retired Peterborough man died in a plane crash at Lebanon Municipal Airport Thursday.
Paul Schlieben of MacDowell Road was flying his 2006 Cessna 182 Skylane fixed-wing single engine when he crashed near a runway at the airport.
Thursday afternoon his wife of 35 years, Joan Schlieben, confirmed he was killed in the crash.
“I'm just trying to absorb it. I found out a couple of hours ago,” she said.
Police and firefighters received a report of a small plane crash at the airport at 1:45 p.m. The FAA control tower had notified Lebanon Emergency Services Dispatch, the Lebanon Fire Department said in a news release.
“On arrival, units found a single-engine Cessna 182 heavily involved in fire in the grassy, wetlands area on the east side of runway 36. Fire units quickly extinguished the fire and upon further investigation found a single deceased victim in the wreckage of the plane,” fire officials said.
Police and firefighters secured the area and helped officials from the state Medical Examiner's Office remove the crash victim, who was taken to Concord.
Lebanon Police Chief M. James Alexander said the plane “left the airport and was trying to come back for some kind of problem it encountered and tried to land and it was unsuccessful doing that. There was some issue.”
The National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation into the cause of the crash, confirmed the sole occupant died, but did not identify the pilot.
Peter Knudson, National Transportation Safety Board spokesman, said shortly after the plane took off “the pilot requested a turn back ... The aircraft crashed short of the runway while maneuvering back toward landing.”
Schlieben took up flying in 2001. He retired in 2006 when he sold his Peterborough software business, Softlanding Systems.
He was known in the town and throughout the ConVal School District for his teen flight program Take-Off and Grow, which he founded in 2007. He started the program so he could mentor high school students interested in aviation.
Take-Off and Grow allowed ConVal High School students to exchange community service hours for flight time with the goal of earning a pilot's license.
Two years into the program's inception, two teens had earned their pilot's licenses and three more are well on their way. The program had also logged more than 2,000 volunteer hours in the community.
The program was ultimately dissolved by Schlieben, Peterborough Selectman Barbara Miller said Thursday. It was a nice idea, but too costly, she said.
Miller said Schlieben had also been an active member of the Peterborough Rotary Club.
“He's an example of what every citizen should be, every resident should be, willing to help and lead in public service and volunteerism and you could always count on Paul,” Miller said.
He had also flown for Angel Flight Northeast, a volunteer pilot association that arranges free air transportation for charitable and medical needs.
Investigator Jill Demko of the NTSB Ashburn, Va., office is expected to begin the NTSB investigation of the crash this morning.
In her investigation, Demko will document the crash scene, find and interview witnesses and collect any pertinent traffic control, weather and flight plan data, Knudson said.
Source: http://www.unionleader.com
Source: http://www.unionleader.com
No comments:
Post a Comment