Authorities have recovered the bodies of both passengers of the Cessna aircraft involved in Tuesday’s collision with an F-16, said Michael Mulé, the public information officer for Berkeley County, South Carolina, where the crash occurred.
The body of Michael Johnson, 68, was discovered in the Cooper River on Wednesday morning. Search and rescue operations discovered the body of his son, Joseph Johnson, 30, later that day, Mulé said. Both men were residents of Berkeley County.
Joseph Johnson, who was piloting the plane, was a former minor league baseball pitcher in the Atlanta Braves farm team network. He was drafted in 2006 and played for three of the Braves’ minor league teams, according to the website baseball-reference.com. He played for The Citadel in 2004 and 2005.
The Air Force pilot, identified as Maj. Aaron Johnson of the 55th Fighter Squadron at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., no relation to the two victims, ejected safely. After a at health assessment at Joint Base Charleston, he has been released from the hospital and is back with his family, according to 2nd Lt. Jenny Hyden, spokeswoman at Shaw Air Force Base.
Maj. Johnson is “in good condition and released back to his home,” Hyden said, adding that he will be aiding investigators with determining the cause of the collision.
Mulé said wreckage cleanup is ongoing, and Berkeley County agencies are assisting the National Transportation Safety Board.
It’s the second tragedy within a week for the Johnson family of Berkeley County, according to USA Today. Michael Johnson’s brother and sister-in-law, James and Beverly, were found dead Saturday at their Missouri home. Authorities have arrested the couple’s 16-year-old grandson and charged him with second-degree-murder, USA Today reported.
Connie Stallworth, the sister of Michael and James Johnson, told USA Today she was “at a loss for words.”
“I’m in denial right now,” she said. “It just can’t be true.”
