 For John Kennedy, the son of the slain president, lost his life in a plane crash on this day in history. JFK Jr. died. A nice-looking guy, his wife, beautiful woman, flying to Massachusetts to attend a cousin's wedding. He had his pilot's license, probably shouldn't have been flying in those conditions. John F. Kennedy Jr. loses control of his Piper Saratoga aircraft, and it plunged into the Atlantic.