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US: One person was killed and two were seriously injured when a small plane crashed Sunday while attempting an emergency landing at Republic Airport in Farmingdale. The plane was returning to suburban Long Island airport after the pilot reported smoke in the cockpit, the official said.
Officials said the Piper PA 28 crashed shortly before 3 p.m. while attempting an emergency landing at Republic Airport in Farmingdale, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of New York City.Suffolk County Police said the single-engine plane took off from the same airport at 2:18 p.m. and the pilot issued a mayday signal a short time later, indicating smoke in the cockpit.
The plane turned back to the airport for an emergency landing, but crashed at 2:58 p.m. near an intersection in North Lindenhurst, not far from a Long Island Rail Road track, the statement said. One person died at the scene and two others were taken by medvac helicopter to a district hospital in critical condition, said a statement issued by Police Department Commissioner Rodney K. Harrison.
It said their names are being withheld while relatives are being informed. Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaefer said the plane crashed in an area of trees and bushes near the tracks. About the crash area, he said, “It’s like a buffer that runs along the tracks.
Tom Altieri told Newsday that he was exiting his vehicle to enter his home in North Lindenhurst around 3 p.m. when he saw a small plane move unusually “low and slow.” The plume of smoke after the “explosion”. A man posted pictures on social media of black smoke billowing from houses on a suburban street. Police said they closed a local road due to the accident.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was notified and responded to the scene. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is conducting an investigation to determine the cause of the accident.
