BANGOR, Maine (AP) — A business jet carrying eight people flipped over and caught fire as it tried to take off during a snowstorm from Maine’s Bangor International Airport, according to federal authorities and air traffic controller recordings.
The Bombardier Challenger 600 crashed on the airfield around 7:45 p.m. Sunday, and there was no immediate word on the conditions of those aboard.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating. The NTSB said preliminary information shows the plane crashed upon departure and experienced a post-crash fire, but that it would have no further statement until after investigators arrive in a day or two.
An audio recording of air traffic controllers includes someone saying “Aircraft upside down. We have a passenger aircraft upside down,” about 45 seconds after a plane was cleared for takeoff.
Bangor International Airport offers direct flights to cities like Orlando, Florida, Washington, D.C., and Charlotte, North Carolina, and is located about 200 miles (320 kilometers) north of Boston. It was closed shortly after the crash and remained closed Monday.
The crash happened as New England and much of the country grappled with a massive winter storm. Bangor had undergone steady snowfall Sunday.
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Throughout the weekend, the vast storm dumped sleet, freezing rain and snow across much of the eastern half of the U.S., halting much air and road traffic and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in the Southeast.
Commercial air traffic was also heavily disrupted around much of the U.S. Some 12,000 flights were canceled Sunday and nearly 20,000 were delayed, according to the flight tracker flightaware.com. Airports in Philadelphia, Washington, Baltimore, North Carolina, New York and New Jersey were among those impacted.
The Bombardier Challenger 600 is a wide-bodied business jet configured for nine to 11 passengers. It was launched in 1980 as the first private jet with a “walk-about cabin” and remains a popular charter option, according to aircharterservice.com.
