AN INQUEST into the death of retired doctor and heir to the famous Slazenger sportswear brand was opened in Dublin yesterday.
Dr Michael Slazenger (69) of The Waterfall, Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, died of severe burns following a crash on his Powerscourt estate in April of last year.
The retired anaesthetist was attempting to land his single-engine aircraft at a private airstrip on the estate when the aircraft’s wing struck a tree on April 10th, 2010.
A passenger on the aircraft, businessman Noel Whitney (66) was pronounced dead at the scene.
Dr Slazenger was rushed to Tallaght hospital before being transferred to the burns unit of St James’s, where he died two days later.
A postmortem carried out by pathologist Prof Eoin Gaffney gave the cause of death as extensive burns consistent with a fire in the cockpit of a small aircraft.
Insp Leo Murray of the Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) yesterday requested an inquest adjournment pending the outcome of an investigation into the crash.
The inquest was adjourned until Wednesday, July 6th, pending an investigation by the unit.
Speaking after the inquest yesterday, Dr Slazenger’s wife Noreen said flying was something her husband loved to do. “He was flying since he was 12 years old and had several thousand hours of flying time behind him.”
She added: “He didn’t fly as much as he used to but he flew in good conditions and loved taking his grandchildren up.”
One of Dr Slazenger’s daughters, Marianne, said her father kept meticulous flying records and logbooks, adding “the AAIU were amazed at how detailed all his records were”. “We’ve received wonderful support from the local community and friends. We miss him terribly,” she said.
Dr Slazenger retired as a consultant anaesthetist from St Michael’s Hospital, Dún Laoghaire, in 2005, but continued to manage Powerscourt Estates until his death.