Small plane crashes near Apache Junction, AZ

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Small plane crashes near Apache Junction, 2 dead
Reported by: Katrina Wessman
Email: [email protected]
Last Update: 3:39 pm



A small plane carrying 2 people crashed near Apache Junction this afternoon.

FAA officials confirmed the deaths of both people on board the Extra 300 aircraft.

The local flight departed from the Williams-Gateway airport, but was returning at the time of the crash.

The crash occurred close to 3 p.m. about 3 miles southwest of the Renaissance festival grounds.

A Lifenet Helicopter witnessed the crash and landed in an effort to aid the victims, but the two were already deceased.

FAA officials say they were not aware of any issue or emergency aboard the plane before the crash.

An investigation is underway by both NTSB and FAA.

[E-Diddy!]

whose airplane was it?

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whose airplane was it?

AZCentral has an article on it now also....with a bit more information.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...crash0509.html

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UPDATE


Plane crashes near Apache Junction; investigators look for clues
Reported by: Katrina Wessman
Email: [email protected]
Reported by: Christina Boomer

Last Update: 5/09 11:39 pm

A small plane carrying 2 people crashed near Apache Junction this afternoon.

A deadly plane crash in a remote area of Pinal County Friday afternoon remains under investigation.

The plane is registered to Fighter Combat International.

They train people in aerobatic techniques.

Fighter Combat International is a subsidiary of Aviation Performance Solutions (APS).

The President of APS, Paul Ransbury, was in the plane dispatched to search for the downed plane after it didn't report back to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport in Mesa on time.

"I think obviously it was a traumatic surprise for us. It’s always tragic when you see something like that. I had expected to find them perhaps on a highway or a road with a forced landing, it was a crash. It is very tragic we are all former military fighter pilots so we know what it's like when somebody's in an accident, you always hope for the best."

The Pinal County Sheriff's Office says the plane crashed "nose first".

Ransbury says they had enough fuel and that both the trainer and client on board had "decades" of experience between them, so he can't understand what went wrong.

"The pilots involved were very highly trained certainly the maneuvers they were doing were well with in their capabilities. The airplane is considered the safest aerobatic airplane in the sky. It's a commercially certified Aerobatic trainer so its truly a mystery to us how this accident occurred. Certainly the people on board were very capable, wonderful people. It’s always very sad. We send our deepest condolences and prayers to the families of all in involved in the accident."

Ransbury says this is the first airborne accident in the company's history. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and detectives from the Pinal County Sheriff's Office are all investigating the crash.


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