A business jet crashed and erupted into flames during its second landing attempt in foggy conditions, leading to the loss of six lives.
The accident, involving a Cessna C550 business jet, occurred at around 4:15 am on Saturday, July 8, in Murrieta, in southern California. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed the distressing event.
Riverside County Fire Department took over an hour to quell the fierce flames, which also scorched around an acre of nearby vegetation adjacent to French Valley Airport. According to Elliott Simpson, an investigator from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the aircraft, capable of accommodating up to 13 passengers, crashed roughly 500 feet short of the intended runway.
During a briefing, Simpson informed the press that most of the airplane, apart from the tail section, was engulfed by the fire. Investigative teams were meticulously surveying a debris field extending about 200 feet in length. The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office released a statement confirming that all six people aboard the aircraft had died. The Riverside County Coroner’s Office identified the victims as Riese Lenders, 25, Lindsey Gleiche, 31, Manuel Vargas-Regalado, 32, Abigail Tellez-Vargas, 33, Ibrahem Razick, 46, and Alma Razick, 51.
The NTSB revealed that the plane had departed from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas with its destination set for Murrieta, a short 45-minute flight. Tragically, the aircraft crashed during its second approach to the airport. Simpson said that the pilot had received clearance for an instrument landing due to limited visibility caused by a low cloud ceiling.
Although the weather conditions technically permitted a landing, visibility and ceiling were at the minimum acceptable levels prescribed for that airport. Investigators will scrutinize the communications recordings between the pilot and air traffic control to gather crucial information. The NTSB is expected to release a preliminary report within the next two weeks.
This accident marks the second fatal crash within a week at Murrieta’s county-owned airport, which serves a population of close to 112,000 residents. On July 4, a man lost his life and three others sustained injuries when a Cessna 172 single-engine aircraft crashed in a parking lot shortly after the take-off from French Valley. The circumstances of both incidents will be subject to thorough investigations.