Quinn, James F.
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Quinn dies after plane crash By Melissa Hale-Spencer James F. Quinn of Westerlo, a successful real-estate developer, was doing what he loved — piloting a plane — on Aug. 15 when something went awry. The plane’s single engine stalled soon after take-off from Albany International Airport and crashed on Van Vranken Road in Clifton Park, according to Sergeant John Phelps with the New York State Police. On Tuesday, Quinn died at Albany Medical Center of serious injuries suffered from the crash. Quinn managed to land the crippled plane without hitting any houses. State Police responded to the scene at about 7:30 a.m., and found the small yellow aircraft had crashed, said Phelps. The plane had just one passenger, Walter F. Uccellini, Quinn’s business partner. The pair were on a business trip. Uccellini, said Phelps, was killed upon impact. Quinn, with a head injury, was taken to Albany Medical Center. Uccellini had been the chairman and president of The United Group of Companies, Inc. Quinn, who joined The United Group of Companies in 1996, served for 16 years as vice president and was responsible for the executive direction of its development and financing projects, new acquisitions, and new product lines. Uccellini was 67; Quinn was 68. “Jim had two great loves in his life — his family and flying,” his family wrote in an obituary this week. (The full obituary is on page 19.) “Jim was a flying aficionado, spreading his love of flying and planes to a wide group of friends and admirers,” his family wrote. “His closest circle of pilots he trained affectionately referred to themselves as ‘Quinn’s Air Force.’” His family also wrote about how he piloted “Angel Flights,” providing free transportation for charitable causes and medical needs. A veteran himself, Quinn was devoted to transporting injured service men and women.
- Altamont Enterprise - August 30, 2012
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