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Deaths have been reported after a business jet crashed while attempting to land at a regional airport in North Carolina, according to a local sheriff.“I can confirm there were fatalities,” Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell said. Campbell did not elaborate on how many people were killed.Video above: Crash scene at Statesville Regional Airport in North CarolinaThe jet crashed while attempting to make a landing at Statesville Regional Airport around 10:15 a.m. Thursday, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The Hearst Television National Investigative Unit found that FAA records show the plane that crashed was a Cessna 550 Citation, a smaller jet often used by businesses. This Citation was built in 1981 and last certified for flight in March of this year.Flight plans show the plane was bound for Sarasota, Florida, and had three additional flights planned for Thursday. From Sarasota, the plane had planned to fly to Treasure Cay International Airport in the Bahamas before returning to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and then to Statesville by evening.Flight tracking data reviewed by the National Investigative Unit shows the jet departed Statesville Regional at approximately 10:06 am. The jet reached its highest altitude — approximately 2,000 feet — less than two minutes after departure and about a mile from the airport, and then it began to descend.It continued descending and at approximately 11 miles from the airport, the plane turned back and made an attempt to fly directly back to the airport. The final recorded data point, about nine minutes after takeoff, shows the plane less than a half-mile from the airport near the Lakewood Golf Club about 800 feet of altitude and approximately 109 mph. On its website, the airport says it provides corporate aviation facilities for Fortune 500 companies and several NASCAR teams. The airport, about 45 miles north of Charlotte, is currently closed. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Deaths have been reported after a business jet crashed while attempting to land at a regional airport in North Carolina, according to a local sheriff.
“I can confirm there were fatalities,” Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell said. Campbell did not elaborate on how many people were killed.
Video above: Crash scene at Statesville Regional Airport in North Carolina
The jet crashed while attempting to make a landing at Statesville Regional Airport around 10:15 a.m. Thursday, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The Hearst Television National Investigative Unit found that FAA records show the plane that crashed was a Cessna 550 Citation, a smaller jet often used by businesses. This Citation was built in 1981 and last certified for flight in March of this year.
Flight plans show the plane was bound for Sarasota, Florida, and had three additional flights planned for Thursday. From Sarasota, the plane had planned to fly to Treasure Cay International Airport in the Bahamas before returning to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and then to Statesville by evening.
Flight tracking data reviewed by the National Investigative Unit shows the jet departed Statesville Regional at approximately 10:06 am. The jet reached its highest altitude — approximately 2,000 feet — less than two minutes after departure and about a mile from the airport, and then it began to descend.
It continued descending and at approximately 11 miles from the airport, the plane turned back and made an attempt to fly directly back to the airport. The final recorded data point, about nine minutes after takeoff, shows the plane less than a half-mile from the airport near the Lakewood Golf Club about 800 feet of altitude and approximately 109 mph.
On its website, the airport says it provides corporate aviation facilities for Fortune 500 companies and several NASCAR teams. The airport, about 45 miles north of Charlotte, is currently closed.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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