ALEXANDRIA — A retired Procter & Gamble technician apparently drowned, unable to unbuckle his seat belt, when his open-air flying machine crashed into the lake at A. J. Jolly Park Thursday evening.

This parachute flyer was recovered from the lake at A.J. Jolly Park and taken to Seibert's Auto Service. (Patrick Reddy photo) | ZOOM |

        The flying machine, called a powered parachute, became tangled in a guy wire about 45 feet above the lake at 8:30 p.m., according to Campbell County Police. The pilot, Michael Albert Kappes, 50, of Alexandria, struggled to get out before the craft fell into the lake and quickly sank to the bottom, boaters told police.

        “He was an active, enjoyable guy who took early retirement to do what he enjoyed,” said Mr. Kappes' son-in-law, John LeForce of Fort Thomas. “He bought an RV to travel around the country with his wife and had been flying his parachute for three years.”

        Mr. Kappes was underwater for up to half an hour before bystanders and rescuers managed to get him to the surface, according to police. Attempts at resuscitation failed, and the Campbell County Coroner pronounced him dead at 10:22 p.m.

        Mr. LeForce said Mr. Kappes had never had problems with his powered parachute before. He would regularly take off and land at the park. His Chevy Trailblazer with a trailer to pull the craft was still parked Friday morning next to a ballfield.

        Mr. Kappes also was a ham radio operator and had worked with the ham radio emergency team during the Beverly Hills Supper Club fire in 1977 and the more recent Falmouth flood, his family said.

        Campbell County Police were still investigating the accident.

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