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Wal-Mart heir John Walton made major modifications to his experimental light aircraft in the weeks before he died, according to the final accident report released last week by the National Transportation Safety Board. The report did not give a probable cause for the June 27, 2005, accident that killed 58-year-old Walton. He died from blunt force trauma after crashing his single-engine CGS Hawk Arrow II aircraft while attempting to land at the Jackson Hole Airport in Jackson, Wyo. Walton had repaired the aircraft after a hard landing weeks earlier following a flight home from the builder in West Virginia, the...

Though more local school bonds are passing, voter support for these measures is in decline. This seeming contradiction can be understood by looking at the impact of Proposition 39 passed by voters in 2000. That year, a small group of multimillionaires and billionaires, most from the Silicon Valley, spent more than $60 million on a campaign to lower the vote threshold for the passage of local school bonds that only property owners are obligated to repay. The two-thirds vote for local bonds was established in the California Constitution of 1879 in recognition of the fact that not everyone who voted...

Wal-Mart billionaire John Walton dies in plane crash55 minutes ago WASHINGTON (AFP) - John Walton, a billionaire heir of retail giant Wal-Mart, died when the small home-made plane he was flying crashed in a national park in Wyoming, authorities said. Walton's plane crashed at 12:20 pm local time (1820 GMT) shortly after taking off from Jackson Hole Airport in Grand Teton National Park, the National Park Service said in a statement. The cause of the accident was not immediately known. "Walton, the pilot and sole occupant of the aircraft, died on impact and was later pronounced dead at the scene...

BENTONVILLE, Ark., June 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- It is with great sorrow that Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., announces the death of John Walton. A Vietnam War hero, member of the Wal-Mart Board of Directors and philanthropist, Walton was killed when the ultra-light aircraft he was piloting crashed shortly after take-off from the Jackson Hole Airport in Grand Teton National Park. The crash occurred at approximately 1:20 p.m. CDT and the cause has not yet been determined. Walton, 58, was the aircraft's sole occupant. Walton was the second son of Wal-Mart founder, Sam Walton. As a board member of the Walton Family Foundation,...

BILLIONAIRE Wal-Mart heir John Walton died when the homemade plane he was flying crashed in a national park in Wyoming, US authorities said today. The plane crashed shortly after taking off from Jackson Hole Airport in Grand Teton National Park, the National Park Service said. The cause of the accident was not immediately known. Walton, the son of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton, was the world's 11th richest person with a net worth exceeding $US18 billion ($23.4bn) , according to Forbes magazine. The park service said: "Walton, the pilot and sole occupant of the aircraft, died on impact and was later...

Just heard over the radio that his plane went down in Wyoming I think. He was 59 yrs old.