A medical transport jet crashed in Northeast Philadelphia on Friday evening, just 30 seconds after takeoff, igniting multiple homes and sending a fireball into the night sky. The crash, which occurred shortly after 6 p.m. local time, prompted a large emergency response as crews worked to contain the fires and assess the scene.
The crash site is located less than three miles from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, a facility that primarily serves business and charter flights. The plane was registered in Mexico to Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, a company based in Mexico with operations both there and in the U.S.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said at a news conference late Friday that officials expect fatalities in this “awful aviation disaster.”
Debris from the crashed Learjet 55 was scattered across a wide area, with pieces landing as far as a quarter mile from the main crash site. FOX 29’s Steve Keeley says a police commander at the scene told him officers were clearing out the parking lot of a McDonald’s at Cottman Avenue and Roosevelt Boulevard, where a medical oxygen tank from the jet was found.
The crash occurred just two days after the deadliest U.S. air disaster in decades. On Wednesday night, an American Airlines jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided midair with an Army helicopter carrying three soldiers over Washington, D.C. No one survived.
What we know:
The jet was carrying a child patient, her mother, and four crew members.
All six people on board were from Mexico, according to Jet Rescue Air Ambulance spokesperson Shai Gold. The child had been receiving treatment in Philadelphia for a life-threatening condition and was being transported home to Mexico. The flight was scheduled to stop in Missouri before continuing to its final destination in Tijuana.
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Gold emphasized that the flight was operated by a highly trained crew, calling the crash both shocking and unexpected.
“All of the aircraft are maintained, not a penny is spared because we know our mission is so critical,” Gold told the Associated Press.
Initial reports were conflicting
The backstory:
Earlier, the Federal Aviation Administration said the aircraft, a Learjet 55, had two people on board and was en route to Springfield, Missouri.
Later that evening, Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, which provides global air ambulance services, confirmed that six people were on board the plane but they did not confirm that any survived.
“Today at approximately 19:25 EST, Jet Rescue Air Ambulance experienced a crash. The aircraft XA-UCI, Learjet 55, crashed after takeoff from Philadelphia. There were four (4) crew members and one (2) passengers (pediatric patient and escort) on board. No further information is available at this time. At this time, we cannot confirm any survivors. No names are being released at this time until family members have been notified. Our immediate concern is for the patient’s family, our personnel, their families, and other victims that may have been hurt on the ground,” Jet Rescue Air Ambulance said in a statement posted to LinkedIn.
Shortly after, the FAA updated its initial count, confirming there were six people on board, not two. It was not immediately clear what led to the discrepancy in the agency’s initial report.
Were any other casualties reported?
What we don’t know:
Officials have not yet confirmed the number of casualties from the crash. The cause remains unclear, and authorities have not stated whether the plane was attempting to land at Northeast Philadelphia Airport.
Investigators are assessing the scene, and more details are expected as the investigation unfolds.
The Source: This story is based on official statements from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, along with on-scene reporting from local journalists and updates from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
