Multiple people are dead after a private jet reportedly owned by NASCAR driver Greg Biffle crash-landed near an airport runway in North Carolina.
The Cessna Citation airplane was seen engulfed in flames to the right of the runway at Statesville Regional Airport on Thursday morning at around 10:15 am.
It is unclear how many people were on the plane when it plummeted to the ground, but the model has a capacity for eight to 10 passengers.
A representative from the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office told the Daily Mail that there are multiple fatalities, although he did not share an exact number of victims.
He said that more information about the deaths will come from the North Carolina Highway Patrol.
GB Aviation Leasing LLC, a company linked to Biffle, owns the aircraft. It is not immediately clear if Biffle was on board.
Images showed the inferno ripping through the jet – which can cost as much as $2.5 million – as thick black smoke was seen blanketing the air.
The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) told the Daily Mail that the Cessna C550 crashed while attempting to land.
Preliminary flight tracking shows that the aircraft left Statesville Regional Airport, which is about 45 miles north of Charlotte, at around 10 am, CNN reported.
It traveled about five miles before turning back toward the airport, although it is unclear why.
Low clouds and visibility of less than three miles were reported in the area of the crash around the time it happened.
There was also light drizzling that abruptly turned into heavy rainfall in the area, according to Fox Weather.
The plane never flew higher than 2,000 feet above the ground, according to FlightAware data.
The FAA, National Transportation Safety Board and the North Carolina Highway Patrol are investigating the harrowing incident.
A representative for the Iredell County Sheriff told the Daily Mail that units from multiple agencies are on the scene.
Witnesses who were at nearby Lakewood Golf Club said the plane was flying ‘way to low’ before it came down.
The Statesville Regional Airport is owned by the city, and according to its website, it provides facilities for Fortune 500 companies and several NASCAR teams.
This airport has no control tower, meaning pilots must self-report their position using a common radio frequency.
There are 89 aircraft based there, FAA records showed.
Statesville Regional Airport said in a statement: ‘We can confirm there has been an aircraft incident at the Statesville Regional Airport.
‘At approximately 10:15 am, an aircraft crashed while landing. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is en route and will investigate the incident.’
During a brief press conference at 12:30 pm, officials said that the airport is closed and the investigation is active.
While it is unknown if Biffle was in the Cessna Citation that crashed on Thursday, the renowned retired NASCAR driver had a plane scare in 2011 while landing at a Kentucky airport.
This is a breaking news story.
