The twin engine plane that crashed in the Bahamas, killing R&B singer Aaliyah and eight others on board, was carrying more than the recommended number of passengers, the plane’s manufacturer told The Associated Press on Friday.
According to Cessna Aircraft Co. spokeswoman Jessica Myers, the plane was certified to carry only six to eight people, including the pilot.
Bahamian aviation officials have also released their first report, saying that the estimated weight of the plane, luggage and fuel was about 5,495 pounds, not including the nine occupants and one bag lost in the swampy area, the Civil Aviation Department said.
The report also mentions that the maximum authorized takeoff weight of the Cessna 402B is 6,300 pounds. This would mean that a mere 800 pounds was left to account for the combined weight of the nine passengers.
“No question about it, they were overloaded,” John Frank of the Cessna Pilots Association told The Associated Press.
A private funeral for Aaliyah will be held at the St. Ignatius Loyola Church, said the Frank W. Campbell Funeral Home. The service will be limited 1,200 people, which is by invitation only. Mourners will follow a horse-drawn carriage carrying Aaliyah‘s body from the funeral home to the church, the funeral home’s general manager, Kevin Mack, revealed to Reuters.
A daylong memorial event for fans will be held at Cipriani’s 42nd Street on East 42nd Street in Manhattan, near the Grand Central Terminal. Aaliyah‘s music and videos will run constantly throughout the service, which runs from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Virgin Records said. The singer’s family has given permission to put a register book outside for fans to sign, which will be given to her family.
After the mass, 22 trained doves will be released to fly overhead, one for each year of the singer’s short life.
Aaliyah‘s body will then be taken to the Ferncliff Cemetary and mausoleum in suburban Hartsdale, New York.
In related news, Patty LaBelle, who received the Lena Horne Award for outstanding career achievement at this year’s Soul Train Awards on Tuesday, took a moment to pay tribute to Aaliyah during her acceptance speech, ABCNews reports.
“I’m just accepting this for Aaliyah because pretty soon in her life, she would’ve gotten this,” LaBelle said.
Aaliyah‘s song “Try Again” was nominated for R&B/Rap Song of the Year, but the award went to gospel singer Yolanda Adams for “Open My Heart.”
Video director Hype Williams also hopes that Aaliyah‘s last moments will turn into a tribute, MTV.com reports.
“It’s a very special project. Everyone put their heart and soul into the work, as we always do, with the intent that the world would enjoy it,” Williams said. “I know there’s a lot of pain involved, but that’s all the more reason people would appreciate what we’ve done as a group.”
