Jonathan Campos, a pilot of the destiny DC plane and from Big Apple, is carrying one of his most precious possessions with him, the police badge of his beloved late NYPD dad. did.
Campos, 34, lost his police father, Feliberto Campos Jr., when he was nine years old. Family and friends said.
He eventually had his father's badge number tattooed on his right shoulder. And they said they would fly with the badge after becoming a pilot.
Campos had a badge with him. The American Eagle passenger plane he was piloting crashed in DC on January 29th in an Army Black Hawk helicopter, killing him and 66 people, and his ex-fiance, Nicole Swissa said outside his wake in Brooklyn on Monday.
“Jonathan's father was an executive of the NYPD,” Suisa, 34, told the Post. “His badge number was 4935. [Jonathan] I loved flying together.
“His mother gave it to him, and he held it, he flew it in the daytime – so crashed. And thankfully, his mother got it back on Friday.” she said.
“We didn't think we were going to get it back, and by God's grace we got it back. His mother will get it back. Now it's her badge. It's me This is a badge for us.
Campos is buried next to his father. And Sussa added, giving him an incredibly heart-pounding respect for his love for flight, with his flight wings.
“I'm just as impressed with him as I was a child,” said the grieving woman, who was a high school girlfriend in Campos.
“I remember sitting with him in my free time, and I asked him, “What do you want to do with the rest of your life?” And he He said, “I want to be a pilot. …I don't know what kind of pilot, but I'll be a pilot, maybe a fighter pilot, maybe an airline pilot.
“And we grew up, and certainly he's a pilot. I'm a lawyer. And I remember he got this job at PSA. [Airlines] Flying for American Airlines.
“And we went out for dinner, and I told him, you know, “Except for all I have to say, how proud I am of you, You can't tell you. You're a pilot. You did that. You did everything you said you were trying to do,” she said.
“I want people to remember that this is the man who lived every day so that there was no day left,” Suisa said.
“I don't know he has regrets. I don't think he would do that, and he was full of life – a character greater than realization.
“Yeah, he was 34. It's a crazy young man who is dying. But he lived a lifelong life.”
The ex-fiance gathered with Andrew Trerorossa and other mourners at the funeral home of his son to remember Campos, where the pilot's hat sat in a closed co, along with a pile of roses and an American flag.
Several pilots and flight attendants attended the uniform wake.
Campos was born in the Bronx and grew up in Brooklyn. According to his obituary.
“Jonathan's passion for aviation and love for flight to the service of others have been given every offer to family and friends, every friendly encounter with his students, every airborne to the cabin and crew It was on display every day at the presentation,” his family wrote.
“Jonathan lived and loved his work,” they added.
About 100 people attended the Wake, approached the cams, kneeled and sobbed in front of a photo of Campos in the pilot's uniform.
Sean Goldberg, 33, spoke to a post that he grew up with Campos in Brooklyn's Bensonhurst area, explaining that the late pilot was a “respectful” man who always stood by his friends and family.
“He's a gentleman… a man,” Goldberg said. “He took care of his family, he took care of his friends.
“The world laments.”
Goldberg said he was among many who adjusted on television to learn about the fatal crash, but only learns the heartbreaking news that Campos was on that flight later.
“I get the call, and it's him. Odds. Chance. The world has lost a good guy,” he added.
Some of the flower wreaths surrounding the co were sent by Delta Air Lines and JetBlue Airways by PSA Airlines, a subsidiary of American Airlines where Campos worked at the time of the crash.
One of the signed wreaths read, “Captain Jonathan Campos will remain in our hearts forever.”
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The mourners spoke quietly to each other as they recall life from New York, who overcame adversity in order to make the sky come true.
Campos' life was first changed when his father passed away and was raised by his mother and aunt.
He attended PS 90 primary school at IS 303 middle school and graduated from John Dewey High School in 2008.
He then moved to Daytona Beach, Florida, where he attended Embry Riddle Aviation College, pursuing his ambitions to become a pilot.
Campos received his Bachelor of Aviation Science in 2015 and later served as SA Flight Instructor at Epic Flight Academy.
Three years later, Campos became the captain of PSA Airlines, and presented him and the rest of the flight crew with the “best distinction” after-death award on Sunday.
Campos, first mate and fellow pilots Samuel Lilly and flight attendants Danacia Elder and Ian Epstein have lived their lives when a plane collides with a military chopper near the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. He was one of the 67 people who lost.
A water salute was held at the airport on Friday night to honor Campos.
The pilot's funeral will be held at 9:45am on Tuesday at St. Bernadette's Church, Shrine, Brooklyn. Campos will be buried in St. John Cemetery in Middle Village, the same cemetery where his father was buried.
GoFundMe, which helps Campos mothers pay funeral expenses, has raised more than $47,000 as of Monday afternoon.
