(Mesa) A 12-year-old boy was among five people killed in the crash of a small business jet near an airport in suburban Phoenix, Arizona, authorities said Wednesday.
Published yesterday at 9:02 p.m.
According to initial reports, the six-seat HondaJet HA-420 plane was heading to Provo, Utah, when it aborted its takeoff at Falcon Field Airport in Mesa on Tuesday afternoon. The plane crossed the airport’s metal fence before colliding with a vehicle traveling on a road west of the airport, authorities said.
Aviation International News said data shows the HondaJet accelerated to more than 150 mph on a 1,550-meter runway before rolling about 400 meters from the end of the runway. The jet then slowed down to reach a speed of 190 km/h at the end of the runway.
Ian Petchenik, a spokesman for Flightradar24, which shows air traffic in real time, said the HondaJet was traveling at 125 km/h at its last recorded position before the crash.
It was not immediately clear why the plane was unable to take off. The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation with assistance from the Federal Aviation Administration and Mesa authorities.
Four of the five passengers aboard the jet died at the scene, Mesa police said Wednesday. The pilot, whose identity has not been released, was hospitalized with serious burns.
Among the passengers on the plane were 12-year-old Graham Kimball and his father, 44-year-old Drew Kimball. The other two victims are Rustin Randall, 48, and Spencer Lindahl, 43.
The driver of the vehicle also died at the scene. Authorities have not released the name of this person, as he has not yet been officially identified.
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