Former college football quarterback Brian Ellis has been identified as one of the passengers who lost their lives in last week’s tragic plane crash in Washington, D.C.
The tragedy, just one of multiple aviation mishaps to have taken place over the last few days, involved an American Airlines flight colliding with a U.S. Army helicopter around 350 feet in the air before they both crashed into the Potomac River on Wednesday night.
The airplane was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members, while there were three soldiers on the helicopter. No one survived.
Ellis, a former Navy quarterback, was identified as one of the victims by The Baltimore Banner on Sunday. He was a 1993 graduate of the Naval Academy and played 22 games for the program.
Brian Ellis Was A Backup For Navy In The Early 90s
The former QB played as a backup for Navy in 1991 and 1992, starting in 92 after Jim Kubiak suffered a dislocated shoulder in the first game of the season but then getting injured himself in the one that followed.
Ellis fractured his jaw against Boston College and spent around two months with his mouth wired shut. He returned in time for the last game of the season against Army.
The incident is still being investigated, but authorities have already disclosed that the pilot of the helicopter was at fault as the aircraft was flying at least 100 feet higher than it should have been.
Another major crash has taken place since then, with a Learjet 55 going down in Philadelphia while carrying a medical patient bound for Mexico.
All six occupants were killed, while at least one person on the ground also lost their life as dozens more were injured.
