June 20, 1964 | Sen. Edward M. Kennedy Plane Crash

June 20, 1964 - Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), younger brother of the late President Kennedy, and Senator Birch Bayh (D-Ind.) were injured in the crash of a private plane last night while on the way to the Massachusetts Democratic Convention.
The pilot was killed, and two other persons were injured. Mr. Kennedy was semiconscious.
Both Senators were reported in fair condition at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in nearby Northampton, Mass.
Also injured were Mrs. Bayh, reported in good condition, and Edward Moss of Andover, administrative aide to Mr. Kennedy, who was reported in critical condition.
The pilot was identified as Edwin J. Zimny, 48 years old, of Lawrence, Mass., a last-minute substitute for the regular Kennedy pilot.
Senator Kennedy was treated in an emergency room for back and chest injuries. His wife, Joan, visited him after he was transferred to an intensive care unit.
Senator Bayh suffered a hip injury. Mrs. Bayh was reported suffering from shock.
Mr. Kennedy’s parents, Rose and Joseph Kennedy, who were vacationing at their summer home in Hyannis Port, were not told of the plane crash.
Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, brother of the Senator, boarded the family plane with an aide and was reported on the way to Boston.
President Johnson telephoned the hospital to inquire about the conditions of the Senators.
The President was notified in San Francisco of the plane accident by White House communications as he rode in an automobile from the Fairmont Hotel to the Hilton Hotel to deliver a speech at a Democratic party fundraising dinner.
Senator Kennedy, who is 32 years old, was elected in 1962, defeating George Cabot Lodge for the last two years of John F. Kennedy’s term. He is up for reelection to a full six-year term in the fall.

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