- A single-engine plane crashed in a residential area of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, on Saturday afternoon.
- The plane took off from Des Moines International Airport and was headed to an airport north of Minneapolis.
- There were no survivors of the crash, but the number of passengers is unknown.
- The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the cause of the crash.
A plane that departed from Des Moines International Airport crashed on its way to an airport north of Minneapolis Saturday afternoon.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed in a statement to the Des Moines Register that the plane departed from the Des Moines International Airport. The plane was on its way to the Anoka County-Blaine Airport in Minneapolis when it crashed at 12:22 p.m.
According to FlightAware, the single-prop plane flew from Naples, Florida, and stopped in Des Moines at around 10:30 a.m. The plane took off 45 minutes later. It crashed six minutes before its scheduled landing time.
“We are aware of this incident and our thoughts are with those affected,” said Sarah Hoodjer, communications, marketing and air service development manager at the Des Moines International Airport. “At this time, we do not have any information. The NTSB will be leading the investigation.”
The Socata TBM 700 left Des Moines International Airport at 11:12 a.m. and was scheduled to land in Blaine sometime between 12:11 p.m. and 12:28 p.m., according to the FAA and flight records. The northern flight path was about 280 miles.
Robin King, director of community relations and communications for Naples Municipal Airport, said the plane’s owner is not a tenant of the airport. King said records show the plane arrived there March 22 and departed the day of the crash.
Also, unlike commercial flights that have a manifest with names of the crew and passengers, that isn’t the case for private airplane travel, King said.
According to FlightAware, the plane came to Naples on March 22 from the Anoka County-Blaine Airport just north of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Local news outlets in Minnesota reported a small aircraft crashed in a residential area of Brooklyn Park, a city just north of Minneapolis, Saturday. Witnesses told local station KARE 11 that the crash started a fire at a home at a local home.
One neighbor told the Star Tribune they believed the residents of the home were on vacation.
The Tribune also reported the plane was registered to DGW Enterprises in Edina, Minnesota.
There were no survivors in the plane, Brooklyn Park Fire Chief Shawn Conway announced at an afternoon press conference. Conway said he did not know how many people were on the plane or their identities.
What happened to the home in Brooklyn Park?
The rear of the house is completely destroyed, charred by the fire. Only a small portion of the home’s exterior walls still stand.
Michelle Chmielewski, a neighbor who lives roughly a block away, said she was in her house at the time of the crash.
“We were in the house and it sounded like a car backfired,” she said. “So then we’re like, ‘What the hell is going on?’ It was a backfire and then a crash. “We went out in the front yard and saw the explosion. We actually thought it was a gas explosion, because the house was immediately in flames.” “The person who lived in the house, she was walking her dog up the path, and she walked by us, and she was like, ‘That’s my house that is burning,’ so there was nobody home, just a cat in the house.”
A power outage is impacting the immediate area, according to Xcel Energy’s website, with roughly 20 customers without power. Xcel Energy staff at are the scene.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash.
An update on the crash is expected tonight, Conway said during the conference.
This is a developing news story.
(This article was updated with new information and to add a video.)
Kyle Werner is a reporter for the Register. Reach him at kwerner@dmreg.com.
Corey Schmidt in Saint Cloud, Minnesota, and Mark Bickel in Naples, Florida, contributed to this article.
