John F. Kennedy Jr. was not killed intentionally; his death was ruled an accident caused by pilot error. On July 16, 1999, JFK Jr. was piloting a single-engine Piper Saratoga with his wife Carolyn Bessette Kennedy and her sister Lauren Bessette. While flying through thick fog over the Atlantic Ocean near Martha's Vineyard, he became spatially disoriented, lost control of the aircraft, and it crashed into the ocean. Contributing factors included haze, darkness, and Kennedy's limited experience flying in such conditions. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded the cause was Kennedy's failure to maintain control of the plane during a nighttime descent over water, leading to a fatal crash on impact.
