UPDATE: The victims were identified as a young Canadian family. Read more.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Five people are dead after a single-engine airplane crashed next to a Tennessee highway, law enforcement authorities confirmed early Tuesday morning.
The plane went down off the eastbound lanes of Interstate 40 past the Charlotte Pike exit, the Metro Nashville Police Department said in a post on social media.
The small aircraft was on approach to John C. Tune Airport in Nashville after a flight from Mount Sterling, Kentucky, about 7:40 p.m. Monday when the pilot made an emergency call, the New York Post reported.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) arrived at the scene shortly after the plane crashed and the National Transport Safety Board (NTSB) will arrive later on Tuesday, police confirmed.
News Now 24 obtained video of the stunning fire ball that occurred during the crash as well as footage from the tragic aftermath.
The control tower at John Tune Airport received a message from the pilot saying the aircraft was experiencing engine and power failure and needed permission to land, a police spokesperson told reporters on Monday night, according to ABC News.
According to cockpit audio on LiveATC.net, the following dialogue occurred:
“I’m declaring an emergency,” the pilot says.
“Do you still have John C. Airport in sight?” the controller asks him.
“My engine shut down,” the unidentified pilot replies. “My engine turned off. I’m at 1,600 (feet)… I’m going to be landing, I don’t know where.”
The controller instructs him to continue the approach, The Post reported.
“Straight in runway 2, straight in runway 2 at John Tune. Do you have the airport in sight?… you’re clear to land,” the controller says.
The pilot says he has the airport in sight but sadly notes, “I’m too far away, I won’t make it.”
The Nashville Fire Department’s spokesperson told the news outlet, the “impact was catastrophic and did not leave any survivors.”
Upon arrival at the scene, the fire department was met with heavy flames, but they were able to extinguish it and preserve evidence from the scene.
As of Tuesday morning, authorities have not yet identified the people who perished in the crash.
