A privately owned business jet crashed and burned on Saturday in Riverside County near French Valley Airport, northeast of Murrieta, US media reported on Sunday, killing at least six people at the scene. .
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said the Cessna C550 jet crashed around 4 a.m.
According to National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator Eliot Simpson, all six victims of the Cessna C550 were adults.
“The plane took off from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas at about 3:15 a.m. The flight lasted about 45 minutes,” he said.
In a statement released on Twitter, the fire department said acres of vegetation burned to ashes before the fire was brought under control at 5:35 a.m.
Meanwhile, Simpson said the jet faced low visibility before landing due to the marine layer.
“Shortly before landing, a sea layer began to cover an area of low visibility. Shortly before landing, the pilot informed air traffic control that he was going to make a missed approach, which normally occurs when When a pilot cannot see the runway environment and is instead referencing the equipment on board the aircraft for landing.”
He added, “Air traffic control granted the pilot clearance to complete the missed approach, and cleared the airplane to return for a landing, but the aircraft crashed approximately 500 feet short of the runway, leaving approximately 200 feet.” Long debris came out.” ,
Except for the rear part of the aircraft, the rest was engulfed in flames. Firefighters extinguished a small brush fire spreading from the wreckage of the aircraft.
Officials did not release the identities of the deceased victims.
Simpson said it appeared the airport was allowed to land due to weather, “but it was right at the minimum level.”
The NTSB statement said five investigators were on their way to the scene, adding that it was too early to determine a possible cause. The Federal Aviation Administration has also opened an investigation into the plane crash.
