Federal authorities have launched an investigation to determine why a private jet tried to make an emergency landing on a Florida highway, colliding with a vehicle and sparking a fiery crash that left two people dead.
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The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the Bombardier Challenger 600 jet had five people aboard when the crash happened at around 3.15pm on Friday near Naples, just north of where the interstate heads east toward Fort Lauderdale along what is known as Alligator Alley.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.
Brianna Walker saw the wing of the plane drag the car in front of hers and slam into the wall.
"It's seconds that separated us from the car in front of us," she said. "The wing pulverised this one car."
Ms Walker and her friend spotted the plane moments before it hit the highway, allowing her friend to pull over before the crash.
"The plane was over our heads by inches," she said. "It took a hard right and skidded across the highway."
Ms Walker said an explosion of flames then burst from the plane with a loud boom. Pieces of the plane littered the highway.
The plane had taken off from an airport at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, at about 1pm and was scheduled to land in Naples around the time of the crash, Naples Airport Authority spokesperson Robin King said.
A pilot had contacted the tower requesting an emergency landing, saying they had lost both engines.
The pilot was cleared to land on a runway but replied "we're not going to make the runway. We've lost both engines," according to a tape of the call cited by the the Naples Daily News.
The tower lost contact, and then airport workers saw the smoke from the interstate just a few miles away, Mr King said.
Mr King said they sent fire engines with special foam to the scene, and three of the five people on board were taken from the wreckage alive.
Collier County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Adam Fisher confirmed two deaths, but said he did not immediately know whether the victims had been passengers on the plane or were on the ground.
Across the country there was a happier ending when a small plane landed in a residential street in Phoenix, Arizona at about 8:30 am after losing power soon after take-off.
The single engine Cessna 172P struck a tree, a mailbox and a parked, unoccupied vehicle, but neither pilot, passenger nor anyone on the ground was hurt, police said.
Australian Associated Press
