A San Diego pilot who died in a small plane crash in the desert northeast of Los Angeles was giving free glider rides to wounded military veterans.
Channing Morse, 67, of San Diego died Thursday when his small plane crashed in a field in Llano in the Antelope Valley. The area is near a glider flight training school.
Mors was a volunteer with the Wounded Warrior Project.
The news came as a shock to family members in San Diego.
"It's devastating. He's my buddy," said Don Strickland, Morse's brother-in-law.
Strickland said Morse's tow plane had just released a glider when his Piper PA-25 crashed.
"Something happened," Strickland said. "And he just hit the ground."
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Morse was an experimental test pilot and U.S. Air Force Academy graduate. He went on to become what Strickland calls an "expert pilot." He flew helicopters in Vietnam before becoming an Experimental Test Pilot and joining the Air National Guard.
Strickland says Morse's flying earned him several awards, including U.S. Test Pilot of the year.
He is survived by his wife, a daughter and a grandchild.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
