Two dead as Learjet crashes into car park and sparks huge blaze near airport after missing runway as it came in to land
Horror as two pilots are reportedly killed as private plane bursts into flames during failed landing at New Jersey airport
TWO pilots were killed when the private plane they were flying crashed into a building and burst into flames during a failed landing at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, officials have said.
The plane — identified as a Learjet 35 — went down while approaching Teterboro’s Runway One at 3.30pm, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The twin-turbo aircraft crashed into a building in an industrial area about half a mile from the runway, according to the US Port Authority, which owns and operates the airport.
There were no passengers aboard the plane, officials told , and no one on the ground was reported to have been injured.
Emergency services reportedly worked to extinguish the blaze for over an hour.
According to Joe Orlando, spokesman for the town of Carlstadt where the plane went down, pieces of melted engine could be seen in the charred wreckage, along with wheels and part of the plane's fuselage.
The cause of the crash remains unclear, however it has been revealed the US National Weather Service had warned of strong winds just before the plane crashed.
A spokesman for Carlstadt police said the jet appeared to be listing to its side before crashing.
The jet had flown from Teterboro to Bedford, Massachusetts, earlier the same day.
It then flew to Philadelphia later on Monday morning, before leaving for Teterboro again at around 3pm.
Alexander Lawrence, a welder who works at Pioneer Industries near the crash site, told the he saw the deadly mishap unfold while he was outside loading up a truck.
“I heard this noise. We hear planes all day, but this sounded so close,” Lawrence said.
“I looked up, and the plane was going right over my head sideways.
"He was already sideways, and then all of a sudden he clipped the building and crashed right into the parking lot.
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“Then I heard a big explosion.
"I said a prayer because I knew there weren’t going to be survivors.”
Lawrence and Pioneer logistics manager Naz Scrudato, 56, said the building that was hit houses the Manhattan Door Corporation, which was set ablaze along with several cars that also exploded.
“I was in this building in my office, and I heard an explosion.
"It was loud. It actually rattled my metal doors,” Scrudato said.
“I came out, and my first instinct was to go and see if we could help.
"We saw it was a plane crash, but unfortunately the entire area was engulfed in flames.
"We couldn’t get anywhere near it. We helplessly stood and watched.”
The plane is owned by A&C Big Sky Aviation of Billings, Mont., official sources told The Post.
A man who answered the company’s phone said he owned the company and a plane of the same make and model, but hadn’t heard anything about the crash.
Teterboro Airport has been closed and all flight operations cancelled, the Port Authority said.
The airport, which is owned by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, is the oldest operating airport in the New York City area.
It is a favourite landing spot for corporate and other luxury private jets.
It was also the scene of the 2009 Hudson River crash, which saw a single-engine plane and sightseeing helicopter collide midair before landing in the water.
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