- A medical transport jet crashed in Philadelphia shortly after takeoff on Friday.
- Six people were on board the Learjet plane when it went down, authorities said.
- The aircraft had departed Northeast Philadelphia Airport and was headed to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri.
A medical transport jet crashed on Friday in northeast Philadelphia.
The Learjet 55 had six people on board when it went down shortly after departing Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Flight operator Jet Rescue Air Ambulance said in a statement that four crew members and two passengers — a pediatric patient and her mother — were on the flight.
It said there were no survivors.
Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on X that all six were Mexican.
Video footage of the incident circulating on social media seems to show the plane hurtling toward the ground followed by a large explosion.
Data from Flightradar24 shows the aircraft, which was headed to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, had been in service for 43 years. It shows the plane took off shortly after 6 p.m. local time and crashed in less than a minute, “less than three miles from the end of the runway.”
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have since launched an investigation into the incident.
NTSB investigator Ralph Hicks said during a press conference on Saturday that the aircraft arrived at the Northeast Philadelphia Airport around 2:15 p.m. on Friday and was on the ground for a few hours before departing at around 6:06 p.m.
The aircraft climbed to about 1,500 feet above the ground before the crash.
Officials are classifying the incident as an “accident,” Jennifer Homendy, NTSB chairman, said at the press conference.
In a post on Truth Social, President Donald Trump said: “So sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.”
“More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged. First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job. More to follow. God Bless you all.”
The incident comes days after an American Airlines flight crashed into a military helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, killing 67 people.
