As it turns out, a wealthy Trump donor whose family died in a plane crash over the weekend experienced a similar tragedy a few years ago when his then 19-year-old daughter died in a fatal diving accident.
At the time, the teen’s death prompted 75-year-old Florida businessman John Rumpel to invest in what would eventually become a multimillion-dollar institution — which also gave his daughter his name.
The 11-story building in picturesque Melbourne is now a haven for the elderly and is still run by Rumpel and his wife of many years, Barbara, 74. Its name, Victoria Landing, comes from Victoria Rumpel – the teenager who died in 1994.
On Sunday, the well-connected couple’s plight was compounded when a private Cessna jet carrying the Rumpels’ other offspring, 49-year-old Adina Azarian, and their own daughter crashed en route from Tennessee to their East Hampton home.
In a statement to The New York Times hours later, Rumpel revealed the couple had been returning home from a four-day visit to his own estate in North Carolina when the plane fell out of the sky at a speed of $20,000 feet per minute.’
John and Barbara Rumpel have been major donors to the Republican Party in recent years, collectively donating $250,000 to a PAC supporting Donald Trump’s ill-fated 2020 campaign. Sunday’s crash is only the latest tragedy to strike the couple, after that of their daughter’s death in 1994
Back then, the teenager’s death prompted 75-year-old Rumpel to invest in this slice of Melbourne property, which eventually made him millions. The 11-story building, which is now a retirement home, has rooms starting at $4,100 per month and is still operated by Rumpel and his wife, who have a penthouse suite
On Sunday, the well-connected couple’s woes were compounded when a private Cessna jet carrying the Rumpels’ other offspring, 49-year-old Adina Azarian, and her own daughter – here with her late mother and grandmother – crashed en route from Tennessee to New York
“I don’t think they’ve found the wreck yet,” Rumpel told the newspaper in a tearful phone interview. “It was sinking at a speed of 20,000 feet per minute and no one could survive a fall at that speed.”
Rumpel, himself a trained pilot, surmised that his family probably passed out and never woke up when the plane depressurized in mid-air.
“They would all have just fallen asleep and never woken up,” he reportedly said while fighting back tears.
The crash happened around 3:30 p.m. near the US Capitol and is still a mystery.
Several US military jets were seen forming up in formation shortly before – after reports came in that the pilot of the single-engine aircraft had become unresponsive in the air.
Shortly thereafter, when the Federal Aviation Administration announced they were investigating the crash, Rumpel — a prominent figure who had come into contact with a number of GOP candidates over the years — announced the plane was dead was about his plane.
“My family is dead, my daughter and my granddaughter,” Rumpel wrote of the casualties caused by Sunday’s disaster, in a comment on a social media post highlighting his wife’s recent attendance at a National Rifle conference Association (NRA) of which she is a senior member.
“We don’t know anything about the crash,” he told the Washington Post.
“We’re speaking to the FAA now.” “I’ve got to keep the line clear,” he said at the time.
Within hours, it emerged that the family’s nanny had also been on board the one-person boat at the time of the crash – and officials later said neither had survived the crash.
In a post on social media, both Rumpel and his wife told friends and family that Sunday’s crash claimed their “entire family” – Virginia State Police later told it was among the four confirmed survivors there were no survivors on board.
In a statement on Sunday, Rumpel announced that the couple had returned to his East Hampton home (seen here) after a four-day visit to one of his North Carolina estates
Azarian’s death comes almost three decades after the death of her sister, Victoria, who died at the age of 19
Azarian’s two-year-old daughter, seen here with her mother in a recent photo, also died in the crash
A nanny employed by the family also died, FAA officials have since confirmed
A photo Barbara Rumpel previously shared of her granddaughter
As the FAA continues to investigate what caused the unexplained incident – which shook Virginians with a sonic boom that was heard miles away – new details about the family affected by the tragedy continue to emerge.
The Rumpels have strong ties to the Florida area and are major donors to several conservative political candidates, including former President Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis. They’ve collectively donated $250,000 to a PAC supporting Trump’s 2020 bid and several thousand towards the success of DeSanti’s gubernatorial run too.
They also donated thousands more in 2016 to figures like Senate candidate Herschel Walker and Congressional candidate Laura Loomer, as well as federal candidates like Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, and Trump.
In the preceding decades, the pair rose to fame as a power couple after meeting in the 1960s in John’s native New York at an office building where Barbara worked and where John, already a real estate mogul, owned.
Within a few years, the couple married before having two children in 1973 and 1975.
The eldest, Adina, tragically died in the crash in Cesna on Sunday – while Victoria, two years younger, died less than 20 years after her birth in the aforementioned diving accident.
The event not only forced the couple to bury their eldest daughter early, but eventually angered Rumpel into buying the then-vacant Brevard County property and building a luxurious retirement home in her name.
The luxury waterfront apartments start at $4,100 and offer senior amenities like private screened patios, walk-in closets, individual climate control, free wired and wireless internet, and weekly housekeeping and laundry services.
Barbara Rumpel also served as co-chair of the Second Amendment Coalition for Trump-Pence in 2016. She has been a member of the NRA’s Women’s Leadership Council since 2002 and has served on the organization’s Executive Committee for more than six years.
The Rumpels even turned over their entire real estate portfolio to the pro-Second Amendment group.
“We want to leave a legacy that will help preserve this country as we know it and as it is meant to be,” Barbara wrote in a statement on an NRA website.
Barbara Rumpel also served as co-chair of the Second Amendment Coalition for Trump-Pence in 2016. She is seen here with actor Tom Selleck at a recent NRA event celebrating women
Barbara, a Chicago native, has been a member of the NRA’s Women’s Leadership Council since 2002 and has served on the organization’s Executive Committee for more than six years. Like her husband, she is an influential GOP donor and is seen here with Donald Trump Jr.
State Police confirmed the plane’s wreckage was found in the Staunton/Blue Ridge Parkway area, in a rural part of the Shenandoah Valley, and that no survivors were found.
The plane crashed in the mountainous regions of Virginia, although military officials deny that pursuit caused the crash
The plane was en route to Long Island, New York, but when it reached its destination, it turned around and flew back to Washington DC, flight paths show. A source familiar with the situation told Portal that it appeared to be running on autopilot at the time.
US military officials sent fighter jets from Andrews Air Force Base, where President Joe Biden was playing golf at the time, in pursuit of the Cessna Citation, which can only carry about 12 passengers.
Flight tracking locations showed the jet suffered a rapid spiral descent and crashed at one point at more than 30,000 feet per minute before crashing in the St. Mary’s Wilderness.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command later stated in a statement that the F-16 was authorized to fly at supersonic speeds, triggering a sonic boom.
The plane eventually crashed in the mountainous regions of Virginia, although military officials deny that pursuit caused the crash.
State Police confirmed the plane’s wreckage was found in the Staunton/Blue Ridge Parkway area, in a rural part of the Shenandoah Valley, and that no survivors were found.
“At 3:50 p.m. Sunday (June 4, 2023), the Virginia State Police was notified of a possible plane crash in the Staunton/Blue Ridge Parkway area,” a Virginia State Police spokesman said.
“Search operations by Virginia State Police, the Augusta County Sheriff’s Office and the Augusta County Fire-Rescue immediately began on the ground and in the air throughout the region.”
“Just before 8 p.m. Sunday (June 4, 2023), first responders were able to walk to the crash site.
“The state police have suspended their search efforts. No survivors were found.’
The Department of Homeland Security said there is no threat at this time.
A Twitter user shows how his dog reacts to the loud sonic boom caused by the plane crash
The plane was en route to Long Island, New York, but when it reached its destination, it turned around and flew back to Washington DC, flight paths show. The private jet, based out of Elizabethton, Tennessee, flew over restricted airspace in Washington DC
Flight path of an aircraft, N611VG, that flew into the New York area before making a U-turn and flying directly over Washington DC. In the end, it quickly sank. It is possible that the sonic booms were from crashing aircraft (either DCANG which were on an exercise) or AC F-16s or both pic.twitter.com/5uAYLVxEvL
— Andrew Leyden (@PenguinSix) June 4, 2023
Dozens of people reported hearing a massive “bang” or “explosion” that shook the ground in Washington and was likened to an earthquake
The Annapolis Office of Emergency Management said the loud noise was caused by an authorized Department of Defense flight
“During this event, the NORAD aircraft also used flares that may have been visible to the public to attract the pilot’s attention,” the statement said.
“Flags are used with the utmost regard for the safety of intercepted aircraft and people on the ground.” Flares burn out quickly and completely and there is no danger to people on the ground when fired.”
Virginia State Police said officers were notified of the possible accident just before 4 p.m
But the announcement came only after multiple agencies received a spate of calls about the noise, which could be heard as far away as Annapolis, Maryland.
The loud noise startled some social media users, who said it shook their homes.
Now some residents of DC, Maryland and Virginia are upset that there was no sonic boom warning.
“If that really was a sonic boom just felt in Maryland and Virginia, the government needs to make a serious statement and a pilot needs to be dishonorably discharged immediately,” Matt Cox wrote.
“It was loud enough to shake my damn coffee table.” “Thank god there’s no toddler in the house.”
President Joe Biden was golfing at the time of the sonic boom at Andrews Air Force Base
Social media users reported hearing a massive “bang” around the city, with some saying it shook their homes
Some online said they were afraid to go outside afterward, while others said whatever the source of the noise, it couldn’t be good.
It shook many people in the Washington area, who reported on Twitter they heard a loud noise that shook the floor and walls. Several residents said they heard the noise as far north as Virginia and Maryland.
“A few minutes ago there was an explosion in Washington DC. “It seems to have been heard in a large part of the city,” Hussein Ibish tweeted. “I have no idea what happened, but it’s not good.”
Erica Petacchi added that she was just getting out of her car when she heard the noise and “felt something.”
“It’s like nothing I’ve experienced before,” she tweeted. “I thought there was a big gas explosion nearby.”
Eventually, however, the City of Annapolis Office of Emergency Management announced that the noise was simply the result of a sonic boom.
“The loud bang, which could be heard throughout the DMV area, was caused by an authorized Department of Defense flight,” it said. “This flight caused a sonic boom.”
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are currently investigating the plane crash.
A White House official said, “The President has been briefed on the incident.” “The noise of the authorized DOD aircraft was weak at JBA.”
The Pentagon and DC Air National Guard did not immediately respond to requests for comment Sunday.