Norman Surgeon killed in crash remembered by colleagues, patients

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) A surgeon who died in a plane crash is being remembered as a man who always had time for his patients and his colleagues. <br/><br/>Doctor Robert Spector died Wednesday when the twin-engine

Friday, July 8th 2005, 6:39 am

By: News On 6

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) A surgeon who died in a plane crash is being remembered as a man who always had time for his patients and his colleagues.

Doctor Robert Spector died Wednesday when the twin-engine Piper Seneca PA-34 plane he was piloting crashed as it tried to land at Max Westheimer Airport.

Fellow surgeon -- Doctor Gerald McCullough -- said Thursday that his colleague was arriving from Austin, Texas, where he had gone to observe new medical techniques for the treatment of liver disease.

No funeral arrangements have been announced. Norman Regional Hospital officials say a private memorial service for staff was being planned.

Eyewitnesses told authorities the plane hit the runway with its nose wheel first then a right wheel, bounced once and ascended again. It cleared the top of the airport terminal but clipped the south side, spun and nose-dived into the ground.

National Transportation Safety Board investigator Tim LeBaron says official aren't commenting on the crash yet.