‘CATASTROPHIC’

5 Killed in Fiery Plane Crash Next to Nashville Interstate

The pilot radioed to say the aircraft would not make an approved emergency landing, authorities said.

All five people on board a small airplane were killed on Monday night when the aircraft crashed at the side of an interstate in Tennessee, police said.

The pilot had reported having engine problems and requested an emergency landing shortly before impact at around 7:45 p.m. along I-40 in Nashville, Metro Nashville Police Department spokesperson Don Aaron said. “Approval was given to land on runway 2 at John Tune Airport. But the pilot then radioed that the aircraft was not going to make it,” Aaron said.

None of the victims have yet been named. Aaron said it was “fortunate” that the plane avoided hitting any buildings or vehicles as it came down.

“When that plane did go down, it did, as witnesses described, implode on impact,” Nashville Fire Department spokesperson Kendra Loney said, according to NBC News. “That impact was catastrophic and did not leave any survivors.” Loney added that firefighters battled heavy flames at the crash site but were eventually able to extinguish the blaze.

The Federal Aviation Administration attended the scene, the MNPD said in a post on X, adding that the National Transportation Safety Board would arrive later Tuesday.

“Our thoughts go out to the loved ones of all those on board the single-engine aircraft that crashed near Interstate 40 this evening,” Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell posted in a tribute.

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Dan Ladden-HallBreaking News Editor

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