I wish his family and friends the best, He had a true talent that can never be replaced. It goes to show that we can't take anything for granted because it could be gone tomorrow.

It shouldn't be a big blow to the upcoming sequels, but without music, Avatar just wouldn't be the same.

Maybe if he did a better job maintaining his planes, this wouldn't have happened.

I asked someone on LN who happens to be a small plane pilot/hobbyist about the likelihood of this being Horners' fault, since mechanical failures of airplanes should be preventable. He supported my conclusion, and added that fatal crashes due to mechanical problems/breakdowns in flight tend to be the fault of the plane owner.