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Authorities told FOX Business on Sunday that the couple, reportedly an award-winning pilot and his wife, died in a deadly plane crash last week after announcing an emergency landing “due to oil on the windshield.”
Local media KLTV said the couple’s dog was also on board and miraculously survived the horrific accident.
The incident happened in East Texas last Wednesday around 5:30 pm, when the Beechcraft A36 hit the power lines while turning to Brownsboro, said the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Authorities added that the small plane went down on a back road in Murchison, according to KLTV.
The Florida Aviation Network (FAN) told FOX Business that the plane belonged to Ronn Timmermans, who is married to Barbara Zimmer. The couple owned the Orlando-based airline AileRon T LLC.
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Ron and Barbara Timmermans hold their dog, Ziva, in front of a small plane in this undated photo. (Florida Aviation Network / Fox News)
“It is with great sadness that it has been reported that Ron Timmermans (RJT) has gone ‘Gone West’ on February 11, 2026,” the network said in an internal memo, referring to the fatal tragedy.
FAN noted that the couple reportedly “died in a plane crash in east Texas.”
The Bonanza & Baron Pilot Training website notes that Timmermans was inspired by his wife, Barbara, to become a flight instructor, and the couple flew to many destinations in the US, Canada and the Bahamas.
Footage from the crash scene showed the Timmermans’ plane lying on the ground nose-down with its tail sticking up into the sky.
When the couple died in the incident, their little dog miraculously survived and was taken by the villagers from the accident site, KLTV reported. The OBSERVER noted that the dog’s name is Ziva.
“The dog was alive, so one of the neighbors took the dog in to take care of it,” said resident Mary Ann Shoulders.
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Ron Timmermans was named the 2021 National Certified Flight Instructor of the Year. (Florida Aviation Network / Fox News)
FAN described the veteran aviation instructor as an important figure in the aviation community. He was named the National Aviation Instructor of the Year for 2021 by an awards program associated with the Federal Aviation Administration. He has also provided pro bono services to FAN since 2017 and served as the network’s host.
“Ron has been an integral part of training hundreds of pilots over the years,” the agency told KLTV. “He has done hundreds of hours of interviews with people in the aviation industry. He is the mastermind behind our online conversations. He was the 2021 National Aviation Educator of the Year. He and Barbara will be greatly missed.”
A Beechcraft A36 Bonanza aircraft in flight on June 27, 2014. (NOAH SEELAM/AFP via Getty Images)
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The NTSB said the crash is still under investigation and officials have retrieved equipment that may have contained information about the crash.
The wreckage was recovered in a secure location for further testing.
FOX Business has reached out to the Federal Aviation Administration for more information.
