NY plane tragedy for Indian-origin family: High School senior Anika Groff didn't join parents, siblings on doomed flight

Anika Groff is the only surviving member of the Groff family as all other family members were killed in a plane crash in upstate New York on Saturday. The private plane was on a trip to the Catskills for the birthday celebration of Anika's sister Karenna Groff , a celebrated student-athlete named the NCAA woman of the year in 2022. Accompanying her on the flight were their parents, Michael Groff, Indian-origin Joy Saini , their son Jared and the partners of Karenna and Jared.

After they were identified as the victims, the plane crash created a ripple as the Groff family was full of achievers. Michael Groff is a neuroscientist, Joy Saini is a urogynecologist. Karenna was also studying medicine and her partner, James Santoro, was in finance. Karenna and James were both MIT graduates. The couple was planning to get married soon, reports said.

About the Groff family

Michael Groff was an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and served as executive director of neuroscience at Rochester Regional Health on top of being an experienced pilot. He met Saini, founder of Boston Pelvic Health and Wellness, while she was training in medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, according to a family statement.

Couyutas Duartem (Jared's partner) and Jared Groff were both graduates of Swarthmore College, Michael Groff’s alma mater. They both worked as paralegals and Jared Groff had plans to attend law school in the fall, according to a statement from Swarthmore College.

Anika is a high school student, the same school which her elder siblings attended, Daily Mail reported. “Two of our graduates, Karenna Groff (2018) and Jared Groff (2017), their parents, and several friends were killed in a small plane crash in New York yesterday. Their lives ended far too soon, and our hearts are with all those who are grieving this unimaginable and sudden loss,” the school issued a statement.

Before the crash, the pilot radioed the air trafiic control about missing the initial approach to Columbia County Airport. The Air Traffic controllers tried to radio back but never heard from them.