'Aircraft upside down': Seven killed in Maine private jet crash during snowstorm

The Bombardier Challenger 600, carrying eight people, crashed shortly after takeoff around 7.45 pm on Sunday as New England and large parts of the country were hit by a powerful winter storm.

• Seven killed, one injured in jet crash during snowstorm at Bangor Airport
• Bangor International Airport closed after crash, expected to reopen Wednesday
• FAA and NTSB investigating crash; identities of victims not yet released

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Seven people were killed and one crew member was seriously injured after a private business jet crashed during takeoff in a snowstorm at Bangor International Airport in the US state of Maine, the Federal Aviation Administration said, according to AP.

The Bombardier Challenger 600, carrying eight people, crashed shortly after takeoff around 7.45 pm on Sunday as New England and large parts of the country were hit by a powerful winter storm. The jet flipped over and caught fire on the airfield, federal authorities said, prompting the airport to shut down.

Audio from air traffic control recordings captured a controller saying, “Aircraft upside down. We have a passenger aircraft upside down,” about 45 seconds after the plane was cleared for departure. Airport director Jose Saavedra said first responders reached the site in less than a minute.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash. The NTSB said preliminary information shows the aircraft went down upon departure and experienced a post-crash fire, but it will provide further details only after investigators arrive at the site in the coming days.

The NTSB said it does not release information about victims, which is handled by local authorities. Saavedra declined to comment on the identities of those killed, saying he was awaiting guidance from federal agencies.

Bangor International Airport, located about 200 miles north of Boston, was closed shortly after the crash and is expected to remain shut until at least noon on Wednesday. Despite heavy snowfall, Saavedra said aircraft had been landing and departing around the time of the incident and that airport crews regularly handle severe weather conditions.

The crash occurred as a massive winter storm swept across much of the eastern United States, bringing snow, sleet and freezing rain that disrupted air and road travel and knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses.

Commercial aviation across the country was also heavily affected. Around 12,000 flights were cancelled on Sunday, and nearly 20,000 were delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware, with major disruptions reported at airports in Philadelphia, Washington, Baltimore, New York, New Jersey and parts of North Carolina.

The Bombardier Challenger 600 is a wide-bodied business jet typically configured to carry nine to 11 passengers. Introduced in 1980, it was the first private jet designed with a walk-around cabin and remains a popular choice for charter flights, according to Air Charter Service.

*With AP inputs