Three killed after plane crashes before bursting into flames during take-off

31 July 2023 , 07:28

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Three have died after a plane crashed before bursting into flames during take-off (Image: AP)

Three people have been killed after a small plane crashed into a hangar during take-off at an airport.

A single-engine Beechcraft P35 plane burst into flames on Sunday morning, at Cable Airport in Upland, California. The incident took place around 6.30am and resulted in the deaths of the pilot and two passengers onboard. The identities of the victims have not been released.

As the aircraft attempted to take-off from the airport it collided with the hangar and caused an explosion upon impact, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed.

After receiving reports of the accident, San Bernardino County firefighters rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire that had engulfed the aircraft. Tragically, they were unable to save the lives of the three victims, and they were pronounced dead at the site of the crash.

San Bernardino County firefighters doused the fire and pronounced the three victims dead at the scene (AP)

There were no other injuries reported in connection with the incident. The airport was scattered with debris following the crash, with photographs showing a gaping hole in the side of the hangar where the plane had collided.

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Cable Airport, which is around 40 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, has become the center of a joint investigation by the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Both authorities have commenced a probe into the circumstances leading up to the crash in an effort to determine the cause.

Messages of condolences have been posted, for the family and friends of those that died. Someone commented on the Upland Police Department post about the incident: "Sending love, hugs and prayers to their families and friends. May they rest in peace."

Another added: "I saw a plane flying just before 6.30 this morning and was thinking it seems earlier than normal. Maybe he wanted to see the sunrise. Then I was headed to a clients home around 6.50 and saw all the smoke."

It comes after a string of small plane crashes in recent months. A pilot recently had a lucky escape after crashing his plane nose first into an airport hangar at Long Beach Airport, California, emergency services rushed to find the small four-seat Cessna 17 crashed nose down on top of the building.

Miraculously the pilot, who was the only person in the plane at the time, escaped uninjured. The incident was first called in at around 2.20pm on Monday July 10.

A spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration said the pilot was practising takeoffs and landings when he unexpectedly went down. Pictures from the scene show the nose of the plane completely crumpled and one of the wings torn off.

Lucy Williamson