Teen survives 2nd plane crash

Teen survives 2nd plane crash

A 16-year-old American student is fighting for his life after surviving the second plane crash of his young life.

Austin Hatch was in critical condition after the Friday crash that killed his father, Dr Stephen Hatch, and his stepmother, Kim.

The teen and his pilot father had survived a 2003 crash that killed his mother and two siblings.

"He never talked about (the previous crash) one time. I'm sure he carried it inside," said Dan Kline, the basketball coach of Canterbury School in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Kline has described the boy as an A-class student who is physically and mentally strong.

"He's a very mature young man."

A junior at Canterbury, the standout high school basketball player has promised to play for the University of Michigan - where his father and mother went to school.

The Hatches were flying to their summer home on Walloon Lake when they crashed in the evening.

It was the same place the family were returning from during their first crash eight years ago, that killed Hatchs mother Julie, 38, and siblings Lindsay, 11, and Ian, five.
Source: AP

Published June 26 2011