Adina Azarian, an East Hampton real estate broker, her 2-year-old daughter, Aria, and her nanny, Evadnie Smith, were among those killed when the private plane in which they were returning to Long Island on Sunday crashed in Virginia. The pilot, Jeff Hefner, was also killed.
The plane, a Cessna 560 Citation V, had taken off in Elizabethton, Tenn., The New York Times reported, and was due to land at MacArthur Airport in Ronkonkoma. Ms. Azarian had been visiting her adoptive parents, John and Barbara Rumpel, for four days in North Carolina. The plane was owned by the Rumpels’ Encore Motors, a Melbourne, Fla., company.
Reuters reported on Monday that according to FlightAware, which provides real-time flight tracking data, the plane apparently reached the New York area before making a nearly 180-degree turn. It eventually crashed in a remote area near the George Washington National Forest in Virginia.
The plane had previously raised alarm after it veered into restricted airspace over Washington, D.C. The Federal Aviation Administration called the pilot but received no response, according to The Times. Two F-16 fighter jets were then deployed to intercept the aircraft, but it was determined that the plane did not pose a threat. The jets, which can fly at supersonic speeds, caused a sonic boom that could be heard across the Washington area.
Citing anonymous sources due to the ongoing investigation, The Washington Post reported on Monday that the pilot of a military jet dispatched to intercept the plane saw the aircraft’s pilot slumped over. Mr. Rumpel had earlier speculated to The Times that the aircraft may have lost pressurization, causing all occupants to lose consciousness. Were that indeed the case, the plane likely flew on autopilot until it ran out of fuel, followed by a rapid descent from its altitude of 34,000 feet.
Ms. Azarian, who was 49, was a broker with Keller Williams Realty since 2020, according to her LinkedIn page. She was a devoted mother to Aria, according to those who knew her.
In a memoir-writing class in East Hampton that she had been part of since January 2022, Ms. Azarian “wrote extensively about her daughter, Aria,” said the teacher, Andrew Visconti, as well as about the woman she called Nanny V, and often mentioned that “Adina, Aria, and Nanny V were a family.”
“I have a 2-year-old boss,” she wrote in one essay that Mr. Visconti shared with The Star. “It’s funny to think of a child like that but it is exactly how it feels to me. My life, my home, my schedule, my surroundings, who I allow to be around us, literally everything down to the car I drive is controlled by a toddler.” She wrote that she loved being a mother.
“I really don’t know what the repercussions are going to be from raising my daughter in a solo-parent household. Of course, I sometimes think about it. But the reality is, I do have a partner in raising her, she just happens to be a lovely woman with a backbone from Jamaica, not the husband/father I may have once imagined.”
The memoir group’s 11 members “grew immensely close,” Mr. Visconti said. “Adina, in fact, was the first one to open up and reveal something very personal — that is what really started the glue of the group. You always need one person who has the courage to open up and reveal something very personal. It kind of gives permission to the others to do the same.”
He felt that Ms. Azarian might have been happy that he shared personal details in her writing, such as an essay in which she wrote about choosing a sperm donor, who, like her, was of Iranian heritage. “She said she picked this particular donor because of his sensibility, because he wrote something about motherhood in the profile that she thought was so touching.”
Ms. Azarian “never complained for a moment about the difficult parts of raising a child,” said Christine Stluka of the memoir-writing group. “She was dedicated to this child she chose to create.” Their untimely death, she said, “is a lesson to realize that you have to live every moment, because you never know when the last one is.”
“She wrote a lot about the incredible complexity of having a child on your own, doing in vitro, having a surrogate, going through a hugely complex and expensive process to finally have this extraordinary child, Aria,” said Gillian Gordon, another class participant. “We’re all deeply saddened by that. It’s overwhelming to think about this gorgeous 2-year-old, and also the nanny, who we also heard a great deal about. All of these families are mourning the loss, and of the pilot too. . . . I was really grateful to count her as a friend.”
Before Ms. Azarian left on her trip, members of the memoir-writing group had gathered for a party on May 30 at Mr. Visconti’s house in East Hampton. The following day, he recalled, Ms. Azarian returned to retrieve a sweater she had left there, at one point taking a call from the pilot who was to fly her, her daughter, and her nanny to Tennessee.
Ms. Azarian was president of Adina Equities in New York City, which she founded in 2010, and was previously a broker for Corcoran on the South Fork. Her website describes her as an “entrepreneur who transitioned from a highly successful 20+ year real estate career in Manhattan — which included owning her own boutique firm — to selling Hamptons luxury real estate as an associate broker for Keller Williams.”
“She covers the whole South Fork of Long Island from Hampton Bays to Montauk, working with both buyers and sellers. . . . Adina has a genuine caring nature, and her clients love to work with her.” She lived year round in East Hampton with her daughter.
“We are deeply saddened to confirm the tragic loss of our beloved agent Adina Azarian, and her daughter, Aria,” reads a statement issued by Keller Williams NYC on Monday. Ms. Azarian “was an iconic real estate agent in New York City and Long Island. Our thoughts and condolences go out to the family, friends, and colleagues of Adina during this incredibly difficult time. We ask for privacy and respect for the family’s wishes as they grieve the loss of their loved ones. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all those who have expressed their condolences and offered support during this time of mourning.”
An internal statement to Keller Williams associates on Monday said, in part, that Ms. Azarian “was an exceptional member of our Keller Williams Points North team, as well as the original team leader of Keller Williams NYC, known for her dedication, professionalism, and warm spirit. Her vibrant personality and unwavering commitment to her clients set her apart in the real estate industry. Adina’s passion for her work and her genuine care for others touched the lives of many, making her an invaluable asset to our team at Keller Williams Points North. She will be sorely missed.”
“My hope, as I think about her,” said Ms. Stluka, from her memoir group, “is that, when you read about the plane going down 30,000 feet in one minute, I’m praying they were unconscious at that point. The pressure had failed, and she wasn’t aware.”
Many of Ms. Azarian’s essays “had to do with the questions that Aria would have or would be asking once she grew up,” Mr. Visconti said. “Adina addressed this, how she was preparing for Aria to ask those questions.” Alas, “nobody will ever ask those questions, because the family is gone.”
