A private jet carrying eight people crashed while attempting to take off from Bangor International Airport in the US state of Maine on Sunday evening, aviation authorities said.
The Bombardier Challenger 600 went down at around 7.45pm local time, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The fate and identities of those on board were not immediately known.
The crash occurred as a dangerous winter storm swept across large parts of the United States, bringing heavy snow, poor visibility and widespread travel disruption. Pilots operating at Bangor Airport had reportedly been struggling with visibility in the minutes before the incident.
Bangor International Airport confirmed it had closed following the crash and said emergency crews were responding. Members of the public were urged to avoid the area.
Audio recordings from air traffic control, reported by CBS News and published by LiveATC.net, captured exchanges between controllers and pilots discussing poor visibility shortly before the crash. It remains unclear which aircraft were involved in those communications. Moments later, a controller was heard reporting that there was “a passenger aircraft upside down”.
Images from the scene showed smoke and flames on the runway.
Bangor remains under a winter storm warning until Tuesday, with between 10 and 16 inches (25–40cm) of snow forecast by the National Weather Service.
The incident added to widespread travel chaos caused by the storm. More than 11,000 flights were cancelled across the US on Sunday, with nearly 5,500 delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. Airports in Philadelphia, Washington DC, Baltimore, North Carolina, New York and New Jersey were among those affected.
BBC
