Memorial for Flight Crew Killed in Crash

Conway, SC – More than a week after a deadly helicopter crash in Georgetown, hundreds gathered at Coastal Carolina University to say goodbye.

Flying was more than their job; it was a part of their lives.

“Diana, Patrick and Claxton helped make our world better and I am truly grateful,” Bob Peiser, CEO of OmniFlight, said. OmniFlight is the owner of the medical helicopter that crashed on September 25, 2009.

In the air, 45 year old Patrick Walters, 39 year old Claxton Dove and 42 year old Diana Connor were part of a medical helicopter crew that flew critical need patients to hospitals for care.

Officials say on their way back from dropping off a patient at MUSC, their helicopter crashed just south of Georgetown.

Sunday’s memorial was a chance for the public to grieve with the families and a chance for those families to say goodbye.

“He lived life to the fullest, never looking back,” Will Dove, Claxton Dove’s brother said. “Rest in peace my brother. This world was a better place because of you.”

“He was a man, a legend and a pilot,” Patrick Walter’s friend Chuck Petrill said. “He would be the guy that would pull over on the side of the road and help a person change a tire even if he didn’t know them.”

“Diana’s life was an example of love itself unconditional from its beginning and sacrificial until its end,” Megan Gunn, Diana Connor’s friend, said.

The NTSB is still investigating the cause of that crash and the investigation could take up to a year.