Obituaries

Tributes Pour In For Corona Chopper Pilot Killed In Crash

A growing number of friends are leaving tokens of sympathy at French Valley Airport following the death Monday of Carl Johan Nurmi in a helicopter crash.

Condolences such as flowers, cards and letters adorned the front desk of a French Valley Airport flight school Wednesday following the death of a noted local helicopter pilot.

The tributes continue after Carl Johan Nurmi, 61, of Corona just a few miles from the airport.

Funeral plans were still pending for Nurmi as the news set in for his colleagues.

Find out what's happening in Lake Elsinore-Wildomarwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Originally from Sweden, Nurmi owned and operated USA Academy of Aviation, a helicopter flight school based at the airport, for more than a decade.

Pat Rodgers, executive director and chief pilot of at French Valley Airport, said he knew him for at least 12 of those years.

Find out what's happening in Lake Elsinore-Wildomarwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"I generally saw him every day. It is going to be a very different place without him," Rodgers told Patch. "He was always smiling, always happy, always friendly."

Known by colleagues as Johan, Nurmi was a FAA Gold Seal helicopter flight instructor with about 25 years of experience and more than 11,000 flight hours. He held seven U.S. and five international helicopter flight speed records, according to the flight school's website.

One of those records was accomplished with Rodgers. In 2006, the pair set out to set a world record for the longest turbine helicopter flight.

"We flew from San Diego to Savannah, Ga.," Rodgers said.

In addition to helping aspiring helicopter pilots log hours, Nurmi did aerial photography and offered sightseeing tours, according to his Facebook profile.

Authorities said Nurmi was at the controls of a Robinson R22 that crash-landed southwest of Lake Skinner and east of French Valley Airport about 10:15 a.m. Monday.

A passenger walked away from the accident.

The news of his friend's death has been unsettling for Rodgers.

"He thoroughly enjoyed being an instructor and a pilot," Rodgers said. "That is why this is kind of a shock to me.

"It was a routine day of instructing for him; I am not about to speculate..."

Investigators with the the National Transportation Safety Board were in charge of the probe. A spokesperson for NTSB could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.

"We know there are risks we take every time we climb into one of these things but it is what we love to do—what he loved to do," Rodgers said. —City News Service contributed to this report.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here