Vicki Cruse, Date of Birth, Date of Death
TweetVicki Cruse
American aerobatic pilot
Date of Birth: 13-Dec-1967
Date of Death: 22-Aug-2009
Profession: aircraft pilot
Nationality: United States
Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius 
About Vicki Cruse
- Vicki Cruse (December 13, 1967 – August 22, 2009) was an American aerobatic pilot and administrator.
- She won the U.S.
- national unlimited aerobatic title in 2007.
- She had been president of the International Aerobatic Club (IAC) since 2005 and was also an Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) director and board member.Cruse was a native of Springfield, Missouri and was shortlisted as one of the all-female slate of candidates in the Fossett LSR land speed record bid.
- At the time of her death she lived in Santa Paula, California. Cruse died on August 22, 2009, when her light plane, a borrowed Zivko Edge 540, registration N540BW, crashed onto the famous Silverstone Race Circuit at Buckinghamshire, England, during a qualifying flight for the World Aerobatic Championships.
- According to witnesses, having completed a vertical climb, she had pushed the nose over at the top in order to descend vertically.
- She then performed a one and one-quarter snap roll.
- The objective was to stop rotation after the aircraft has rolled one and one-quarter times, but rotation in this case only slowed, continuing to the ground.
- She was pronounced dead at the scene.
- Investigations after the crash explained that she being a very short person needed help with reaching the rudder pedals.
- The seat is not adjustable so blocks were added as extenders for her in most likely a very quick and shoddy way.
- During her routine, which she was a master of...most likely one of the blocks broke loose and she simply could not reach the rudder pedal.
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