2022 -- S 2272

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LC004667

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2022

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

COMMEMORATING THE 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LIFE-SAVING HEROICS OF

THE LATE THOMAS N. PRINSTER

     Introduced By: Senators Anderson, de la Cruz, Quezada, Burke, DiPalma, Lombardo,
Raptakis, and Acosta

     Date Introduced: February 15, 2022

     Referred To: Recommended for Immediate Consideration

     WHEREAS, Thomas N. Prinster grew up in Grand Junction, Colorado. As a young man,

he was a star football player who attended Gonzaga University, graduating with a degree in

literature. He learned to fly and attained his pilot’s license. His first assignment was to scout

climbing routes in the peaks around Grand Junction; and

     WHEREAS, Mr. Prinster served our nation with valor and distinction as a member of the

United States Navy. During the Vietnam War he flew submarine patrols from the USS Enterprise

before returning home to begin a career as a commercial pilot; and

     WHEREAS, On the fateful day of February 21, 1982, Mr. Prinster was piloting a Pilgrim

Airlines Flight 458 plane that took off in the afternoon from New London, Connecticut, on a

flight to Boston with ten passengers. Tragically a fire broke out below the cockpit while the plane

was near the Scituate Reservoir, which was later determined to have been caused by a faulty

deicing system. The cockpit area was consumed with smoke and fire; and

     WHEREAS, Shortly thereafter, the controls of the plane were white hot and Mr. Prinster

and his co-pilot First Officer Lyle Hogg were being roasted by the fire. Unfortunately, if Mr.

Prinster let go of the controls, the plane would crash and all would perish. Despite the fact that

their uniforms were melting to their bodies, their hair was singed, and the heat was charring their

arms, legs and torso, Mr. Prinster remained at his station, never letting go of the controls, and was

able to guide and safely crash-land the plane. As a result, eleven of the twelve people aboard the

plane survived, with one perishing from smoke inhalation; and

     WHEREAS, After landing on the frozen reservoir, Mr. Prinster and co-pilot Hogg

walked to the shore a quarter-mile away in incredible pain, before collapsing but not before they

had done everything possible for the passengers. Mr. Prinster’s body suffered seventy percent

burns, many of them third-degree. He spent the following six months at Massachusetts General

Hospital where he was one of the first recipients of artificial skin. Sadly, his lungs were scarred

for the rest of his life; and

     WHEREAS, After recovering, Mr. Prinster and Mr. Hogg were invited to the White

House to meet President Reagan and received the United States Department of Transportation

Heroism Award. The Rhode Island Governor awarded Mr. Prinster the State Life Saving Medal,

and the two pilots were honored with a park near the crash site named for them. They also

received the 1982 Order of Daedalians Civilian Air Safety Award, a Veterans of Foreign Wars

Citation for Heroism, the "Well Done" award from the Charles Lindbergh Chapter of the Air

Force Association, and numerous other awards and accolades; and

     WHEREAS, After recovering from his injuries, Mr. Prinster took to the air again, but

soon thereafter he chose a different path in life and attained a degree in psychotherapy and

became a psychoanalyst and counselor. He also enjoyed writing novels later in life. Sadly, Mr.

Prinster died in 2018 due to complications from the 1982 crash and was inducted posthumously

into the Rhode Island Aviation Hall of Fame in 2019. The memory of Thomas Prinster’s

incredible life-saving heroics and courage on February 21, 1982, will live on forever; now,

therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island hereby commemorates the

40th Anniversary of the life-saving heroics of Thomas N. Prinster and honors the memory of his

courageous and valorous actions on the fateful day of February 21, 1982; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to Joyce Anderson.

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LC004667

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