Business jet departing from Las Vegas crashes in Murrieta, killing 6 people

Six people were killed when a twin-jet plane crashed near French Valley Airport near Murrieta early Saturday morning. 

The aircraft, reportedly a 1979 Cessna C550 business jet, went down around 4:15 a.m., sparking a brush fire as it erupted in flames upon impact. 

The fire torched about an acre of vegetation before it was contained by firefighters at around 5:35 a.m., according to Riverside County Fire Department officials.  

The National Transportation Safety Board says the six occupants, all adults, of the plane were pronounced dead at the scene.

None have yet been identified.

The Federal Aviation Administration says the flight departed from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas at around 3:15 a.m.

“Shortly before landing, a marine layer began to envelope the area with low ceilings and visilibities. The pilot reported to air traffic control that he was gonna perform a missed approach, which generally happens when a pilot can’t see the runway environment” said Elliot Simpson, an NTSB investigator during a press conference Saturday afternoon. 

He said that after a first failed attempt at landing, the pilot was again cleared by air traffic control to attempt a second missed approach.

“The airplane crashed about 500 feet short of runway 1A, which appeared to be the original intended landing runway,” Simpson said. 

Both the NTSB and the FAA have sent investigators to the scene to determine the cause of the crash. They expect to remain on scene for the next couple of days before the wreckage of the plane is taken in for additional investigation. 

A preliminary report on the crash will be ready within the next two weeks. 

This is the second fatal crash to occur in Murrieta near French Valley Airport in the last week, after a single-engine Cessna 172 crashed on Tuesday, July 4, leaving the pilot dead and the three other passengers — his children — hospitalized.