VENTURA, Calif. (AP) – A California medical examiner’s office has confirmed that Oscar-winning composer James Horner was the pilot killed in a plane crash this week, and the death has been ruled an accident.
Ventura County Deputy Medical Examiner Zeb Dunn says Horner’s identity was confirmed Thursday. He says the cause of death is blunt force trauma.
The 61-year-old “Titanic” and “Avatar” composer died Monday when his plane crashed and burned in a remote area of the Los Padres National Forest, about 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles.
People who fueled Horner’s single-engine plane confirmed that he took off in the aircraft. His agents issued a statement Tuesday saying he died, even though official confirmation would take longer.
Horner was nominated for 10 Academy Awards and won two for “Titanic.”