Statesville jet crash kills seven, NTSB reports preliminary details
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60-Second Summary
Statesville, N.C. investigators said a Cessna Citation 550 crashed while returning to Statesville Regional Airport on Thursday, killing seven people including former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and six companions. The aircraft departed about 10:05 a.m., made turns indicating a return to the airport roughly five minutes later, and impacted before reaching the runway roughly 10:20 a.m., erupting in fire. The National Transportation Safety Board said a passenger texted "emergency landing," the cockpit voice recorder has been sent to Washington, and wreckage and witness statements are under examination as part of an ongoing investigation. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.
About this summary
This 60-second summary was prepared by the JQJO editorial team after reviewing 5 original reports from The News-Gazette, https://www.wbtv.com, abc11 News, FOX 35 Orlando and Internewscast Journal.
Timeline of Events
- Dec. 18, ~10:05 a.m. — Cessna Citation 550 departs Statesville Regional Airport.
- Dec. 18, ~10:10 a.m. — Aircraft reportedly made turns indicating return to the airport.
- Dec. 18, ~10:15–10:20 a.m. — Aircraft impacted before runway and erupted in fire; seven fatalities confirmed.
- Dec. 19 — NTSB held news conference providing preliminary flight-path and recovery details.
- Dec. 20 — Cockpit voice recorder sent to Washington; investigators continued wreckage and witness analysis.
- Articles Published:
- 5
- Right Leaning:
- 2
- Left Leaning:
- 0
- Neutral:
- 3
- Distribution:
- Left 0%, Center 60%, Right 40%
Aviation investigators and safety regulators benefit from recovered evidence and cockpit voice recorder analysis to determine cause and guide safety recommendations.
Families of the victims, including Greg Biffle's relatives, suffered irreparable loss while the local community experienced shock, grief, and trauma.
After reading and researching latest news.... NTSB investigators report a Cessna Citation 550 departed Statesville Regional Airport about 10:05 a.m. Dec. 18, returned and crashed during approach, killing seven including Greg Biffle; investigators have recovered wreckage, sent the cockpit voice recorder to Washington, and are examining evidence to determine cause.
Coverage of Story:
From Left
No left-leaning sources found for this story.
From Center
Statesville jet crash kills seven, NTSB reports preliminary details
The News-Gazette https://www.wbtv.com abc11 NewsFrom Right
Investigation details released in 10-minute flight, crash killing NASCAR's Greg Biffle and 6 more
FOX 35 Orlando Internewscast Journal
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