A UPS cargo plane crashed and burned Wednesday morning at a Birmingham Alabama airport, killing two crew members, the Associated Press reported. Both the pilot and co-pilot were killed; they were the only people on board the jet.
The plane reportedly crashed in an open field on the outskirts of Birmingham-Shuttlesworth Intternational Airport, spokesman for the city's airport authority Toni Herrera-Bast said. The plane had been carrying a variety of cargo.
"It sounded like an airplane had given out of fuel. We thought it was trying to make it to the airport. But a few minutes later we heard a loud 'boom,'" eyewitness Sharon Wilson said.
"The plane is in several sections," Birmingham Mayor William Bell added, Bell was briefed on the situation by the city's fire chief. "There were two to three small explosions, but we think that was related to the aviation fuel."
The National Transportation Safety Board said an investigative team was on its way to the scene, the AP reported.
"As we work through this difficult situation, we ask for your patience, and that you keep those involved in your thoughts and prayers," the Atlanta-based UPS said in a statement.
Another eyewitness James Giles, who lives near the airport said the plane missed his home by just a couple hundred yards, based on noticing debris and tree damage.
Giles was away at work at the time of the crash though he indicated that based on what he saw, the plane was attempting to land on a runway that ordinarily is used by a much smaller aircraft.
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