Cockpit transcript released in crash that killed Inquirer co-owner Lewis Katz, six others

At 9:40 p.m. that Saturday night, Katz's Gulfstream G-IV crashed and burst into flames after accelerating down the runway at Hanscom Field, killing the 72-year-old just four days after he won an auction for ownership of The Inquirer, The Daily News and Philly.com.

According to 6ABC, the transcript reveals that one of the pilots repeated the phrase, "The lock is on," followed by "I can't stop it" and "oh no no" in the moments before the crash. The plane was scheduled for a return to Atlantic City after a series of regional flights that took Katz and his friends to a fundraiser at the home of historian Doris Kearns Goodwin earlier that day. 

A preliminary report from the NTSB, released in June, suggested that pilot error was likely a strong factor in the crash, as the experienced crew evidently did not perform a pre-flight check that may have alerted them to an issue with the gust lock system. 

According to Philly.com, 800 pages of new documents were released by the NTSB on Wednesday, including further evidence that the flight crew routinely took off without performing pre-flight checks. The documents indicate that the pilots likely attempted to take off despite failing to unlock the elevators and rudder on the plane's tail, a necessary procedure for the plane to take flight. 

Katz, who rose to prominence in business and law, was a former owner of the New Jersey Devils and Nets. In recent years he became increasingly dedicated to charity, donating millions of dollars to educational institutions including Temple University and Dickinson College.