Flight instructor called 'heroic' after Philly Fluehr Park plane crash

After a training aircraft crashed during an emergency landing in Philadelphia last week, a local flight school is calling this pilot "heroic."

During a flight over the Delaware River on Wednesday, April 1, a Piper Pilot 100i training aircraft from Philadelphia's Fly Legacy Aviation flight school experienced an engine power loss, FLA's General Manager Alex Souponetsky told USA TODAY.

"Instructor pilot John Aytch's strong piloting skills and heroic composure throughout such an urgent and difficult situation is palpable on the audio recording of the plane's last minutes in the air," Souponetsky said.

The incident occurred in Northeast Philadelphia's Fluehr Park at approximately 3:45 p.m., seriously injuring Aytch as well as student pilot Dan Eckert.

"Although they succeeded in preventing any fatalities or injuries to others, they were unable to avoid striking a tree during their landing," Souponetsky said.

Aytch and Eckert both "embody the core values our school attempts to inspire in each pilot that graduates our training program," Souponetsky continued, expressing gratitude that both instructor and student were in stable condition.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration's logged analysis of the incident, the aircraft sustained "substantial" damage.

No other updates were available on investigation logs from the FAA or National Transportation Safety Board.

Kaitlyn McCormick is a Philadelphia-based reporter writing all things trending, breaking and city-related for USA TODAY's Philadelphia Metro Connect Team.