Greenwood, IN — Anh-Thu Nguyen, a Vietnamese-born flight instructor striving to become the first Vietnamese woman to fly solo around the world, tragically died when her small plane crashed in Indiana on Wednesday.
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Nguyen, 44, had just taken off from Indy South Greenwood Airport on the second leg of her global journey, heading toward Pennsylvania, when her 2005 Lancair IV-P spiraled out of control and crashed behind a gas station in Greenwood. She was the only occupant and was pronounced dead at the scene. No one on the ground was injured.
Nguyen’s mission, which began July 27 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, aimed to inspire future generations of Asian women to pursue careers in aviation, aerospace engineering, and STEM fields. In a Facebook video posted shortly before the crash, Nguyen reflected on completing the first leg of her journey and urged followers to “keep flying forward together.”
Born in Vietnam and immigrating to the U.S. at age 12, Nguyen earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and a master’s in aeronautics and astronautics from Purdue University. She later received a doctorate in aeronautics and astronautics engineering from Georgia Tech. She was the chief flight instructor at Dragon Flight Training Academy and founder of Asian Women in Aerospace and Aviation Inc., a nonprofit empowering female Asian pilots.
The organization released a heartfelt tribute, calling Nguyen “an inspiring pilot, instructor, and advocate” who “lived with boldness, curiosity, and drive” and became “a beacon of hope to many.”
Witnesses described the crash as eerily silent, with no explosion or fire upon impact. Authorities continue to investigate the cause of the crash.