There have been 4 major plane crashes in the US in 4 days. What is going on?
By Alexandra Skores, CNN
Washington (CNN) — It’s been a tragic week for aviation as two military jets, a skydiving plane and a charter jet crashed over the course of just four days.
On Saturday, bystanders caught video of a massive fireball that erupted on a mountain in Yakima County, Washington, when a Marine fighter jet crashed. The pilot parachuted to safety.
In Butler, Missouri, the next day, 11 passengers and a pilot died when a skydiving plane crashed moments after takeoff. Several family members of those on board watched from the airport as the plane went down.
Then, on Monday, eight crew members died when a B-52 bomber crashed at Edwards Air Force Base, northeast of Los Angeles. The massive eight-engine military plane was on a routine test mission, the base said. When it crashed, a towering black plume of smoke billowed into the sky.
And Tuesday night, a private jet carrying six people crashed on a highway in Laredo, Texas. One person was killed, but bystanders and police helped rescue the other passengers from the fiery wreckage.
The four dramatic crashes happening so close together has raised concerns, but experts say there is no sign of any connection between the very different accidents.
“These are unrelated to each other, and each is unique in terms of its operation or type of aircraft, and so we will need to wait and see to see the results of these investigations to see exactly what might have happened in these,” said Hassan Shahidi, president and CEO of the Flight Safety Foundation.
Each of the crashes involved planes that were not regulated like major commercial passenger jets. Two were managed by the military. The charter and skydiving planes, while regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration, face fewer rules than planes flown by major airlines.
Here’s what we know about each event so far.
Marine fighter jet crashes in Washington state after pilot bails out
The F/A-18 Hornet fighter jet crashed in south-central Washington state around noon local Saturday, the Marine Corps said, calling it a “non-fatal aviation mishap” during a routine training flight. The pilot ejected from the aircraft and was picked up by local law enforcement.
“Our mountain pass deputy made contact with the pilot, who sustained minor injuries and was transported to the hospital,” the sheriff’s office posted.
The Naches Fire Department closed off and evacuated campers around the Rimrock Lake area after the crash sparked a wildfire.
The Marine Corps, which will determine the cause of the crash, said no additional details are available to “preserve the integrity of the investigation.”
Skydiving plane crashes on takeoff
On Tuesday, officials released the names of the 12 people who died when their Pacific Aerospace P750 skydiving plane crashed into the ground next to a highway in Butler, Missouri.
“It never reached an altitude of 100-200 feet. It was barely over the trees,” Dennis Jacobs, the acting manager for Butler Memorial Airport, said.
Witnesses saw the plane struggle to gain altitude before turning left, stalling and falling to the ground.
The victims ranged in age from 23 to 69. Nine were experienced skydivers, and the other two were about go on tandem jumps with instructor, officials said.
It was the deadliest crash of a skydiving plane since a twin-engine Beechcraft BE65 went down in Mokuleia, Hawaii in 2019, according to the United States Parachute Association.
Skydiving planes are regulated under a section of FAA rules known as Part 91. The section generally applies to noncommercial flights that do not carry passengers for money, but skydiving flights are also included. Companies conducting air jumps face more regulations than private pilots, but those requirements have more to do with the proper handling of skydiving equipment rather than flying the plane itself.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash.
B-52 bomber crashes in fiery explosion on Air Force base runway
A B-52 Stratofortress also went down while trying to take off from Edwards Air Force Base in California on Monday at 11:20 a.m. to perform a test supporting a radar modernization program, Air Force officials said.
The massive jet was barely in the air when it crashed alongside the runway, leaving a black scar on the runway and desert terrain.
The crew of eight was a mix of military service members, government-employed civilians and government contractors, the Air Force confirmed.
The calamity is the deadliest crash involving a B-52 bomber since 1982. In that incident, nine crew members died in training at Mather Air Force Base near Sacramento, California, The Associated Press reported at the time.
The Air Force will investigate the cause of the crash.
Private jet trying to land crashes on Texas highway
The Cessna Citation Latitude business jet departed San José del Cabo, Mexico, around 6:18 p.m. and was bound for Austin, Texas when it experienced a problem and diverted toward Laredo.
The plane made a normal descent approaching the airport, but about two miles before the runway, as it was losing altitude, it made a right turn toward a highway, data from Flightradar24 shows.
The plane crashed on the road, clipping a car and breaking apart.
Bystanders and law enforcement rushed to break the windows, open the door and rescue passengers.
One of the six people onboard was killed, police said. One person in the vehicle that was hit was taken to the hospital but has since been released.
“It is nothing short of a miracle that this tragedy did not become a mass fatality event,” Laredo Mayor Victor Treviño said.
The plane was operated by NetJets, a company that sells fractional shares in business jets.
FAA records show the aircraft was built in 2016. It has a wingspan of 72 feet and can cruise faster than 500 miles per hour.
NTSB investigators are on their way to the scene.
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