ט׳ תמוז ה׳תשפ״ו | June 23, 2026
ZAKA, Shluchim Assist After Deadly Maryland Plane Crash
ZAKA North America and Misaskim volunteers worked alongside local authorities in Maryland after a plane crash near Bowie claimed the lives of three young men, ensuring Kavod Hameis and assisting the families with kevurah arrangements.
ZAKA North America, together with Misaskim of Central Jersey and Misaskim of Baltimore, responded after a tragic plane crash in Maryland claimed the lives of three young men.
The victims were identified as Yoav Bomrind of Zichron Yaakov, David Rabinovitz of Haifa, and Elad Neidik of Toronto. They were aboard a single-engine Piper PA-28 aircraft that crashed in a wooded area near Bowie, Maryland, after departing from Ocean City, New Jersey, en route to Montgomery County Airpark.
Following notification of the crash, ZAKA Search and Rescue headquarters in Eretz Yisroel dispatched ZAKA North America Commander Yanky Landau and mobilized resources in coordination with Misaskim volunteers. The teams worked for many hours alongside local authorities and emergency agencies, assisting with recovery efforts, collecting remains and personal effects, and ensuring proper Kavod Hameis.
Local Chabad shluchim were also involved in assisting at the scene and supporting the families. Rabbi Eli Baron, shliach at Chabad of Bowie, responded after being notified of the tragedy by Rabbi Shlomo Beitch, director of the Chabad Israeli Center of Rockville, and worked with officials and communal askanim as the response unfolded.
At the crash site, Rabbi Baron was able to recite tefillos and help ensure that the niftarim were treated with dignity according to halacha. He was assisted by Rabbi Nechemia Mond, a chaplain with the Maryland State Police, while volunteers from ZAKA and Misaskim later continued the difficult work of Kavod Hameis at the scene.
Rabbis Sholom and Mendel Raitchik of Chabad Upper Montgomery County greeted and supported families of the deceased at the airport and hosted and fed a large group at their center
The response required coordination with local law enforcement, medical examiners, aviation authorities, international representatives, and the families of the niftarim. ZAKA representatives are continuing to assist with arrangements to bring the niftarim to kevurah, working with the Israeli Foreign Ministry and the Israeli Consulate in Washington to repatriate Bomrind and Rabinovitz to Eretz Yisroel, and with communal organizations to bring Neidik to kevurah in Toronto.
Communal liaison Rabbi Mattis Melnicke helped coordinate communications, logistics, and cooperation between the various organizations and authorities involved.
“From the moment we received notification of this tragedy, our volunteers mobilized to provide assistance and support,” said ZAKA North America Commander Yanky Landau. “Together with our partners at Misaskim, our volunteers worked tirelessly to ensure that the victims were treated with the utmost dignity and that their families received the support they needed during an unimaginable moment of loss.”
ZAKA North America Executive Director Moshe Rozenberg said the response showed the importance of strong relationships between emergency organizations, community partners, and government agencies, allowing volunteers to respond quickly and provide culturally sensitive support.
The crash remains under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration.
Photos: ZAKA; Chabad of Bowie
COMMENTS
this terrible tragedy unfortunately serves as a reminder of the Rebbe’s *very* strong instructions never to fly on single-engine planes. ויה”ר שנזכה לקיום היעוד בלע המות לנצח גו’ תומ”י ממש.
A helicopter also only has one engine
Umm source
You see some letters when your average plane has 4 engines when now almost none have. Planes evolved majorly since the 50’s
https://derher.org/wp-content/uploads/5784-10-1.pdf
Last page
Seems to imply helicopters are also not suggested, though dovid Raskin and butman famously flew from Manhattan to crown heights on Friday Chanukah on a helicopter, so I don’t have clarity on that
Not understanding what you wrote about 4 engines etc
Planes have possibly evolved, but unfortunately such tragedies happen once in a while. There was another such crash a few years back also with 2 frum yidden (iirc reported by anash.org as well). There’s no reason to believe that the Rebbes holy instruction is no longer in effect imho
nobody did wrong leave it to NTSB to learn from everybody’s mistakes. The rest of us i think could be more supportive for those involved.
Let’s look to history 101 for a moment. And some simple Newtonian mechanics. Pull up a chair.
It was said back then in the 1950’s, sure, that the twin brought with it an additional sense of assurance. And in fact that might be why our rebbe concured. But as pointed out by analysts, turning to supposedly safer actually resulted in more disappointing statistics.
The reason it turned out that way was because with that second engine came a need for additional skill. In a twin, a flameout now required coordination of all 4 extremities. The compromised craft needs be balanced skillfully against torque resulting from the asymmetric forward thrust (picture the strain in Dvarim 22:10 לֹא תַחֲרֹשׁ בְּשׁוֹר וּבַחֲמֹר יַחְדָּו). Parallel forces necessitate skill to keep the bowling ball in line.
But skills rust with time. So the additional assurance benefited just those who’d put in the effort to keep their skills current. Such as within the rigorous training of the USAF. Those in the general aviation sector, however, or private owners, had mostly not demonstrated the self-motivation to invest in the ongoing training needed for handling disruption in a twin. Thus its reputation of a weaker safety profile.
This led to the return of the single engine camp, especially as engines were becoming increasingly more reliable. Which is why today authorities recommend the average buyer go with the single.
So it okay to fly single