John
03-23-2009, 08:16 AM
US officials have launched an inquiry into the cause of a plane crash in Montana, in which at least 16 people died, reportedly including children.
The light aircraft nosedived into a cemetery near the town of Butte on Sunday. There were no survivors.
The pilot was flying from Oroville, California, when he diverted to Butte, the FAA said. He tried to land but crashed 500ft (150m) from the airport.
Reports say the dead included children who were going on a ski trip.
"We are just beginning our investigation," National Transportaion Safety Board investigator Kristi Dunks told a news conference in Butte late on Sunday.
"We don't have a lot of information at this time," he added.
FAA officials said earlier the plane - a Pilatus PC-12 Swiss-made turboprop aircraft - crashed at approximately 1527 local time (2127 GMT) on Sunday in cloudy weather conditions.
The local airport has a short runway and is not easy to land at because it is surrounded by mountains, John Emeigh, a reporter for The Montana Standard newspaper, told the BBC.
Reports suggest the pilot had filed a flight plan showing a destination of Bozeman, a ski destination about 85 miles (136km) south-east of Butte.
But the pilot cancelled his flight plan at some point and diverted for Butte, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) spokesman Mike Fergus said.
The children on board had probably been looking forward to a ski trip, Mr Fergus said.
Eyewitness account
Local resident Steve Guidoni said he saw the plane nosedive into the ground as he was driving by the cemetery.
"It just went straight into the ground. I went over there to try to help. I thought maybe I would pull someone out of the fire," Mr Guidoni was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.
"It smelled like diesel fuel to me. There was nothing left of it... You wouldn't even know a plane was there," he said.
The light aircraft nosedived into a cemetery near the town of Butte on Sunday. There were no survivors.
The pilot was flying from Oroville, California, when he diverted to Butte, the FAA said. He tried to land but crashed 500ft (150m) from the airport.
Reports say the dead included children who were going on a ski trip.
"We are just beginning our investigation," National Transportaion Safety Board investigator Kristi Dunks told a news conference in Butte late on Sunday.
"We don't have a lot of information at this time," he added.
FAA officials said earlier the plane - a Pilatus PC-12 Swiss-made turboprop aircraft - crashed at approximately 1527 local time (2127 GMT) on Sunday in cloudy weather conditions.
The local airport has a short runway and is not easy to land at because it is surrounded by mountains, John Emeigh, a reporter for The Montana Standard newspaper, told the BBC.
Reports suggest the pilot had filed a flight plan showing a destination of Bozeman, a ski destination about 85 miles (136km) south-east of Butte.
But the pilot cancelled his flight plan at some point and diverted for Butte, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) spokesman Mike Fergus said.
The children on board had probably been looking forward to a ski trip, Mr Fergus said.
Eyewitness account
Local resident Steve Guidoni said he saw the plane nosedive into the ground as he was driving by the cemetery.
"It just went straight into the ground. I went over there to try to help. I thought maybe I would pull someone out of the fire," Mr Guidoni was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.
"It smelled like diesel fuel to me. There was nothing left of it... You wouldn't even know a plane was there," he said.