A СŷƵ flight school instructor admitted Wednesday in federal court to letting an instructor teach without certification for almost a year before a fatal crash in which a student was killed.
Nouman Saleem, owner of ProFlite, pleaded guilty to allowing Philip Everton McPherson II to teach without certification from October 2021 until Sept. 28, 2022, when a plane he was in crashed in a yard in Salisbury Township, according to federal court records.
Student Keith Kozel, 49, of Easton died in the crash, and federal prosecutors charged McPherson last year with involuntary manslaughter, serving as an airman without a certificate and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Saleem, also of Easton, pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and obstruction of justice. Charges carry a maximum total sentence of 30 years in prison, court records state. Sentencing is scheduled for September.
Saleem’s attorney John Waldron said Saleem cooperated with authorities and has been helpful.
Federal authorities said McPherson knew he was not competent to fly after twice veering off the runway during attempted landings while instructing students in New Jersey. Additionally, he failed a certification exam and surrendered his pilot’s license in October 2021, according to authorities.
He had a temporary airman certificate, which allowed him to fly by himself or with an instructor, but he was not allowed to fly as a flight instructor with students, according to authorities.
Saleem employed McPherson for 79 hours of flight instruction, which led to students’ paying more than $100,000 for invalid flight instruction, according to his indictment.
Federal authorities said McPherson contacted Saleem days after failing his reexamination and told him to tell students he would be out for a few weeks awaiting a negative COVID test.
“Understood. That’s fine. You and I need to be on the same page with students… It’s nobody’s business so nobody needs to know anything,” Saleem responded, according to court documents. He knew McPherson had a temporary airmen certificate and was not allowed to fly with students, authorities said.
McPherson was instructing Kozel when the single-engine Piper PA-28 crashed into a yard on Keystone Road in Salisbury Township, according to officials. They had left Allentown’s Queen City Municipal Airport and were headed to Hackettstown Airport in Warren County.
A Quakertown man working in the area witnessed the crash and pulled McPherson from the wreckage. The National Transportation Safety Board determined a partial loss of engine power led to the crash.
