Indian-origin doctor Joy Saini (2nd from right) with her family members | X/@renmusb1
An Indian-origin doctor, Joy Saini, and her family members were killed in a private plane crash in upstate New York on Saturday. Among the deceased were Saini’s husband Michael Groff, her two children and their partner.
On Sunday, Saini’s family confirmed their deaths in a statement to the media. The plane, Mitsubishi MU2B, crashed on Saturday when the aircraft was trying to land at the Columbia County Airport, about 200 km from New York City, said National Transportation Safety Board investigator Albert Nixon as reported by IANS.
Speaking at a news conference in Albany, Nixon said that the pilot missed the approach for landing and asked to make another try, but the air traffic controller noticed it was flying at a low altitude and unsuccessfully tried to alert the pilot.
The plane took off from Westchester Airport in a New York City suburb. It crashed about ten miles from the airport near the border with Massachusetts State.
Who Was Joy Saini?
Saini immigrated to the US with her parents, Kuljit and Gurdev Singh, and received her medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh. She met her husband at the university. According to the website of her medical practice in Boston, Saini was a urogynecologist and female pelvic reconstructive surgeon. Her husband was also a neurosurgeon.
As per the family statement, Groff was “an experienced pilot who fell in love with flying after being taught by his father at the age of 16.” The couple’s daughter Karenna Groff was a medical student, and her partner James Santoro, an investment banker. Santoro was reportedly planning to propose Karenna soon.
Meanwhile, Saini and Groff’s son Jared Groff and his partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, a law student were also killed in the crash.
Saini is survived by another daughter, Anika, and her mother.
