6 Dead After Small Plane Crashes in Ohio Neighborhood Just Minutes After Takeoff

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a day ago

Six people are dead after a small plane crashed into an Ohio neighborhood on Sunday, June 29, according to authorities
The plane caught fire after it crashed in what a fire official described as a "heavily wooded area"
The identities of the individuals killed have not been made public, but the pilots are said to have been "highly experienced"Six people have died after a small plane crashed into a neighborhood in Ohio.
The crash was reported in the area of King Graves Road and Henn Hyde Road in Howland Township on Sunday, June 29, according to NBC affiliate WFMJ and CBS affiliate WKBN-TV.
The Cessna 441 twin-engine went down shortly before 7 a.m., according to a statement from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), obtained by PEOPLE.
Two crew members and four passengers were onboard the plane when it crashed, CBS affiliate KDKA reported.
The plane took off from Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport just seven minutes before the crash, according to NBC News.
Howland Fire Chief Ray Pace said first responders had a 'difficult' time responding to the crash site, which was located in a 'heavily wooded area,' according to WKBN-TV.
The plane was on fire when crews finally reached the site, Pace explained. The Youngstown Air Reserve Station helped extinguish the blaze, he added.
It is unclear what caused the crash. The identities of the individuals who were killed have not been made public.
Officials described the pilots involved in the crash as "highly experienced," according to NBC News.
"These were the best of the best in terms of folks here at the field, as well as the pilots. Can't say enough about them and give anything to rewind the day and take them to breakfast instead," said Mike Hillman of Jets FBO.
'I can't say enough about them,' he continued, adding that he would 'give anything to rewind the day' and 'take them to breakfast instead.'
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Anthony Travena, executive director of the Western Reserve Port Authority, said, "I can't think of better people, and so our community is at a great loss, and there were really wonderful people.'
He added, "It's a very tight-knit community. So, all those in the aviation community have reached out, and these are really important people to us."
The NTSB has said it is investigating the crash. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is also investigating, per the local media reports.
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