RICHMOND, Va. – A small private jet crashed in woods and burned Sunday afternoon near a small airport in rural Virginia, killing all five people aboard, police said.
The National Transportation Safety Board confirmed Monday that the plane had departed from Fort Lauderdale and was bound for Hot Springs, Virginia.
The twin-engine IAI Astra 1125 went down amid trees along an airport road in Hot Springs, a community in the shadow of the Allegheny Mountains, killing the male pilot, the male co-pilot and three passengers -- a man, woman and a boy, Virginia State Police said in a statement.
Three of the victims, Local 10 News has learned, were Alfredo Diez, the CEO of Atlantis Flight Academy, his wife, Kseniia Shanina, and their 3-year-old son, Nicholas.
“He was little. My son is 10 and they would play,” said neighbor Kristen Abrams. “I’m just still in shock. They were a young family and a vibrant part of the neighborhood.”
Abrams said she found out about what happened on Monday morning.
“The housekeeper told us this morning. She was here to feed their animals,” she said.
Loved ones have identified the pilot has Claudio Colmenares and his co-pilot as Gagan Reddy, both also from South Florida.
Police and other emergency responders converged on the site in Bath County after the crash occurred about 3 p.m. Sunday.
A state police spokesman told The Associated Press that the plane caught fire on impact.
“Small crash site, everything is burnt, meaning the tail numbers are unidentifiable,” Sgt. Rick Garletts said Sunday night.
Hot Springs is located about 165 miles (265 kilometers) west of the Virginia capital city, Richmond.
Local reports showed what appeared to be plumes of white smoke rising from an impact site. The airport was closed in the aftermath of the crash.
The NTSB confirmed in a news release that one of its investigators arrived at the accident site Monday morning to begin “the documentation of the airplane.”
“The wreckage will then be recovered to a secure facility for further evaluation,” the news release stated.
A preliminary report is expected within 30 days of the accident.