STATESVILLE, N.C. (AP) — A business jet crashed Thursday at a regional airport in North Carolina used by NASCAR teams and Fortune 500 companies, erupting in a large fire and killing multiple people, authorities said.
“I can confirm there were fatalities,” Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell said, though he declined to say how many.
The Cessna C550 crashed while landing at Statesville Regional Airport, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of Charlotte, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
Golfers playing next to the airport were shocked as they witnessed the disaster, even dropping to the ground at the Lakewood Golf Club while the plane was overhead. The ninth hole was covered with debris.
“We were like, ‘Oh my gosh! That’s way too low,’” said Joshua Green of Mooresville. “It was scary.”
The National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA were investigating. AccuWeather says there was some drizzle and clouds at the time of the crash.
The plane took off from the airport shortly after 10 a.m. but then returned and was attempting to land there, according to tracking data posted by FlightAware.com.
The plane had planned to fly later from Sarasota, Florida, to Treasure Cay International Airport in the Bahamas before returning to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and then to Statesville by evening, data showed.
Video from WSOC-TV showed first responders rushing onto the runway as flames burned near scattered wreckage from the plane.
The airport’s website states that it offers corporate aviation facilities for Fortune 500 companies and several NASCAR teams.
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This story corrects the sheriff’s first name to Darren, not Grant.
