Posted by chicagomedia.org on September 14, 2008 at 14:38:04:
Friends And Family Mourn Death Of Suburban Pilot
CHICAGO ¯ Friends and family members are mourning the death tonight of a suburban pilot. He died last night in a small plane crash in Wisconsin. Kenton Morris ran the Chicago Flower and Garden Show - and, before that - was a long-time program director at WGN Radio.
CBS 2's Derrick Blakley reports that the single-engine plane crashed into the woods around 7 p.m. Thursday, half-a-mile from the airport, in Arbor Vitae, Wisc. In the pilot's chair was 61-year-old Batavia resident Kenton Morris, a longtime former sales and program executive at WGN Radio.
Mike hardy is Morris' longtime business partner.
"His avocation was flying. He loved flying. It was his number one hobby. He'd do anything to fly, hobby or business, and often combined both," Hardy said.
After leaving WGN's staff, Morris' production company put on the Chicago Flower and Garden Show for 10 years.
"Kenton was the Garden Show," Hardy said. "It was at McCormick Place, it went away, he resurrected it and made it a bigger success."
The ill-fated plane was a Cirrus CR-22 - a popular four-seat aircraft with state-of-the-art electronics, and with a unique safety feature - a ballistic parachute that can be used in emergencies. It is not known if the parachute was deployed.
Ironically, Morris was a close friend of another pilot, WGN star Bob Collins, who died eight years ago in a mid-air collision.
"Kenton loved flying back then and he got Bob involved," Hardy said. "He was an avid aviator. He loved flying just like Kenton did."
Morris' flight originated in the Chicago area, then stopped in Milwaukee to pick up two passengers before the crash. The names of the passengers, both men, have yet to be released.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash.
(CBS2)