Two aircraft collide at air show in Dallas, killing six

by Jared Gans - 11/12/22 4:30 PM ET

FILE – This June 19, 2015, file photo, shows the Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration building in Washington. Federal employees overseeing Boeing and other aircraft makers say they face pressure from the companies and fear retribution from their own bosses if they raise too many safety concerns, according to a survey of the workers that was delivered to Congress on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

Two planes collided during an air show in Dallas on Saturday, killing six people.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said in a statement that a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and a Bell P-63 Kingcobra, both used during World War II, crashed during the Wings Over Dallas Airshow at Dallas Executive Airport around 1:20 p.m. Central Time.

Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a tweet on Sunday that the county medical examiner reported six fatalities from the crash, and officials will work on Sunday to investigate and identify those killed.

Officials said no one on the ground was hurt.

The FAA said it and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will investigate the incident, with the NTSB in charge of the investigation and responsible for providing updates.

The agency said it will release the planes’ registration numbers after they are verified at the scene. It said the FAA and NTSB do not identify people who are involved in aircraft accidents.

The Dallas Morning News reported that a spokesman for Dallas Fire-Rescue said he did not know the status of the pilots as of 2 p.m. local time on Saturday.

A video shared on Twitter shows the moment the planes collided. One plane appears to crash into the other, and both immediately fall to the ground after impact. An explosion occurs once the planes hit the ground.

Jason Evans, the spokesman for Dallas Fire-Rescue, said in a statement that its resources were already on the scene in case of this type of emergency. He said the department participated in a joint disaster exercise at Dallas Love Field Airport that mirrored some of the circumstances from today’s incident.

Evans said debris stretched from Dallas Executive Airport across a highway to a strip mall on the opposite side, but no spectators or other people on the ground were affected by the crash.

“In response to today’s crash, firefighters were able to quickly arrive at the crash site, at the South end of the airport, and extinguish the flames where most of the debris came to rest,” he said.

Evans said the department, Dallas police, the FAA and the Dallas Office of Emergency Management responded to the crash. He said the airport will be closed while the investigation is ongoing, and the rest of the air show has been canceled.

–Updated on Nov. 13 at 12:14 p.m.

Tags Boeing Clay Jenkins Dallas Federal Aviation Administration National Transportation Safety Board the dallas morning news