© Steve Gonzales/Houston Chronicle via AP
According to ABC 13 in Houston, the plane crashed near William P. Hobby airport around 1 p.m. local time, landing on top of a car parked at a hardware store. The car was empty at the time of the accident, but the three passengers on the plane died on impact.
The victims were reportedly identified as married couple Tony and Dana Gray, and Tony's brother Jerry.
The family's plane was attempting to land at Hobby Airport, but was too high on a first and second attempt, the network reports. Instructed by an air traffic controller to try again, the plane went for a third landing, but reportedly nose-dived to the ground.
Troubles also appeared at least 15 minutes before the failed landing, as Fox News reports that the altitude of the plane showed extreme fluctuations with it going from 1,800 feet at one point, down to 200 feet and back to 1,200 before the fatal incident.
Audio obtained by ABC 13 revealed an air traffic control yelling for the pilot to pull up just moments before the crash.
While the landing was far from smooth, witnesses told the network that they heard loud noises coming from the aircraft before it hit the ground.
"You ever listen to those guys playing with toy airplanes? How the spit and sputter. That's what he sound like," Don Howard told ABC 13.
According to Fox News, a cause of the crash has not been determined but the National Transportation Safety Board is heading the investigation.
1,300 miles away in North Dakota, three others died when a 19-year-old pilot crashed into May Lake, killing himself, a 10-year-old male passenger and a 39-year-old female passenger, WDAY Channel 6 reports.
None of the victims have been identified.
According to what authorities told ABC News, complications at the time of departure are what caused the crash.
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident in North Dakota, ABC reports.
Reader Comments
to our Newsletter