Three occupants on board a twin engine aircraft survived when the aircraft they were in crashed and burst into flames after the pilot made an emergency landing on North Jones Boulevard in Las Vegas on Sunday afternoon. No one on the ground was injured. The aircraft was completely destroyed.
The Cessna 141, which is based in Las Vegas, was cleared to land at the North Las Vegas airport. As the pilot prepared to land, one of the engines quit running and it became evident to the pilot that he was not going to make it to the airport. As he descended, he saw two roads, Rancho Drive, which was heavy with traffic and North Jones Boulevard, which had no traffic. The pilot landed the aircraft on Jones Blvd just north of Foxcroft Ave.
When the aircraft came into contact with the ground, it burst into flames. It then hit a metal street light pole, which swung the aircraft around with it coming to rest in the road in front of 3830 North Jones Blvd. At 3:05 P.M. fire dispatchers received numerous calls from motorists, Metro Police, bus drivers and residents in the area that the aircraft crashed and was on fire in the roadway.
Within minutes firefighters arrived on scene and were told by police on scene that there was exploding ammunition on the aircraft and it appeared the three people on board the aircraft were safely out and no one was inside. Using foam and water, firefighters had the fire out in a few minutes. The smoke from the crash could be seen from all around the Las Vegas Valley.
The pilot told authorities that he was preparing to land the aircraft when the troubles started and he made the emergency landing. The three men exited the aircraft with flames all around the aircraft. They were not injured and refused medical treatment. All three of the men live in Las Vegas. The aircraft was enroute from Southern California to the North Las Vegas airport. The aircraft is owned by a North Las Vegas business. The owner estimated the value of the aircraft at $650,000.
Plans are being made to move the aircraft to the airport and open the road within the next few hours. The incident is under investigation by the NTSB and FAA.>/p>
There were no injuries to emergency personnel.
