A small plane crashed Thursday at a regional airport north of Charlotte, N.C., killing multiple people, local and federal authorities said.
The Cessna C550, a light corporate jet, had six people on board when it crashed at Statesville Regional Airport in Iredell County around 10:15 a.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said.
Iredell County Chief Deputy Bill Hanby said there were multiple deaths, though the official number was unclear.
“I can confirm there were fatalities,” he said, CBS News reported.
An unnamed federal official told CNN one of the people on board was associated with NASCAR. WBTV-TV in Charlotte reported the plane was owned by a private company associated with retired NASCAR driver Greg Biffle.
The FAA said it along with the National Transportation Safety Board would investigate the crash and provide updates.
Airport manager John Ferguson said authorities have “no information on any cause.” He said the airport was closed following the crash.
One witness who works at the airport told CNN she saw the plane catch on fire after the crash.
“My desk faces where it happened. I was just sitting here, and then I heard a loud boom, and our hangar shook a little,” said the woman, who identified herself only as Victoria out of privacy concerns.
“I got up to look and that’s when I saw the flames and fire everywhere.”
Statesville Regional Airport doesn’t have a control tower and pilots are required to report their location near or on the site via a shared radio frequency.
FlightAware tracking data indicated the aircraft left the airport at 10:06 a.m., traveled about 5 miles, then made a turn back toward the airport. The Cessna never gained more than 2,000 feet.
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