Pilot killed during dangerous stunt at Travis air base show

A veteran show pilot was killed Sunday when his plane crashed while performing a stunt, officials at Travis Air Force Base in Northern California said.

Eddie Andreini, 77, died when his plane slammed upside down into the tarmac and slid about 500 feet before bursting into flames, officials said.

Andreini’s vintage Stearman biplane crashed while performing a “cutting ribbon,� which involves attaching a knife to the plane and slicing a ribbon just off the ground, base commander Col. David Mott told the San Francisco Chronicle.

“Everybody was just staring in awe,� spectator Luis Alcocer, 18, told the Chronicle.

The accident occurred during the second day of the Thunder Over Solano air show, which draws tens of thousands of visitors to the base.

Andreini’s fellow stunt pilots mourned his death.

“It’s a tragic loss. We’re a tight-knit group,� Steve Stavrakakis, who performed before Andreini, told the Chronicle. “Anytime something like this happens, it’s devastating to our family.�

Andreini began flying at 16 and had taken to the air for almost 1,000 performances, which were described on his website as a close-to-the-crowd experience.

“Your audience will be thrilled at the sight of this huge biplane performing double outside loops, square loops, torque rolls, double snap rolls,� the website reads.

Gretchen Kelly, who manages the Half Moon Bay airfield where Andreini’s business was based, told the Chronicle that he was the “patriarch� of their community.

“We are all just devastated,� she said. “He was a very kind man -- just the nicest man you could ever meet.�

On Travis Air Force Base’s Facebook page, officials announced that the air show had been canceled. Spectators were also asked to submit video and pictures that could help investigators piece together what happened in the moments before the crash.

Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration were on scene Sunday evening to help with the investigation, which is being led by the National Transportation Safety Board.