Two crew members died when a small plane crashed in New Jersey on Monday, setting multiple buildings on fire.
May 15 (UPI) — Two crew members died when a small plane crashed in New Jersey on Monday, setting multiple buildings on fire.
The Learjet 35 crashed around 3: 30 p.m. in an industrial area in Carlstadt, about a quarter-mile from Teterboro Airport, close to New York City, according to the Federal Aviation Administration .
The twin-engine plane was attempting to land at the airport en route from Philadelphia International Airport.
The jet crashed into two buildings and burst into flames, witnesses told WABC-TV .
Thick, black smoke was visible from New York City.
A person who worked in one of the buildings hit told WABC-TV the crash occurred about 30 minutes after one of the businesses closed. People in the second building all got out safely.
Steve Case, co-founder of AOL, posted an image an Instagram and wrote: « Was trying to land, but missed the turn. Crashed a few hundred yards from airport. »
He took the photo from the window of another plane.
One witness told WNBC-TV she works at United Door and saw the crash outside her office window.
« We were there working like every day and all of the suddenly we see the airplane coming down, » she said. « It landed in the parking lot and then we heard the explosion. »
The Learjet occupants were the crew members. No one was hurt on the ground, Carlstadt police said.
The plane’s tail number is N452DA and it is registered to A&C Big Sky Aviation in Billings, Mont.
The Learjet 35, capable of carrying eight passengers and a crew of two, was manufactured from 1973-94, according to Globalair.com .
Designated as a « reliever » airport, Teterboro’s « focus is on removing the smaller and slower aircraft from the regional air traffic that would cause major congestion at the Port Authority’s commercial airports, » according to the airport’s website .
The airport is run by the Port Authority of Nww York and New Jersey.
