On May 9, 1970, Walter Reuther, his wife May, architect Oscar Stonorov, Reuther's bodyguard William Wolfman, the pilot and co-pilot were killed when their chartered Gates Learjet 23 crashed in flames at 9:33 p.m. Michigan time.
Reuther had earlier survived an April 1948 incident in which he was hit by a shotgun blast through his kitchen window.