Dr. John Goble, president of Sectra North America since 1997, died on Saturday morning when his helicopter apparently crashed into power lines one mile south of Adelanto Airport in Adelanto, Calif.

An avid helicopter pilot and a Vietnam War veteran, Dr. Goble, 58, was traveling with another pilot and at least one other person in an antique military helicopter on the way to a Veterans Day event in Riverside, California when the craft went down, a Sectra spokesman tells DOTmed News. All three people were killed.

An FAA spokesman says it could be months before they determine the exact cause of the accident.

"This is very sad news for all of us at Sectra. John Goble has been a strong and committed leader of our North American Business for the past 12 years. John was a great person to work with, a close friend, as well as a very competent colleague, but most of all he was a loving husband, brother and son. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies go out to his family and friends in this moment," Dr. Torbjorn Kronander, president of Sectra Medical Systems, said in a statement.

Tom Giordano, a Sectra board member and management consultant since 2005, has stepped in as acting president of Sectra's North American division. Giordano has a long history in the medical business, and held various executive roles at Philips, including Vice President, Marketing, since 1977.

Dr. Goble is survived by his wife, mother and two brothers.

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