Chilling audio reveals the final moments inside private jet before it crashed onto freeway
Ben Thompson
Featured Image Credit: X/B_Walker97/Facebook/Chris O’Connor
Air traffic control audio has been released revealing the final panicked moments inside a private jet which crashed onto a highway.
The Bombardier Challenger 600 plane crashed in South Florida on Friday (9 February), killing two people.
The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) confirmed the plane had five people on board and plummeted onto the I-75 outside Naples.
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Although three people survived the horrific accident, the details of their injuries have not been shared publicly.
As of yet, none of the passengers' identities have been disclosed and a cause for the crash has yet to be established.
Chilling air traffic control audio has since been released detailing the final moments before the crash.
In one segment of audio, the pilot is heard discussing the stomach-churning situation he faced.
He said: "Okay, Challenger, Hop-A-Jet 823, lost both engines, emergency. I'm making an emergency landing."
When the air traffic control told him that he was clear to land on runway 23, the pilot grimly responded: "We're clear to land but we're not gonna make the runway. We've lost both engines."
What follows after this chilling statement is unintelligible noises, that are either the pilot panicking or the plane breaking down.
Efforts to reach the pilot again proved futile and a rescue helicopter is granted clearance.
The plane crashed just 4.7 miles short of the airport.
Passing motorists snapped pictures of the horrific crash, as pieces of the aircraft were scattered across the road.
Video footage also showed an explosion burst through the plane, knocking off one of its wings.
According to data from FlightAware, the plane had been heading from Naples Airport to Ohio State University Airport.
The college has since confirmed that the plane had no connection to them, and that it was just using their facilities.
The plane itself belonged to Hop-a-Jet, a Florida based company that hires out private planes.
In a statement following the tragedy, Hop-a-Jet said: "[We] received confirmed reports of an accident involving one of our leased aircraft near Naples' and that it would send a team to the crash site.
"Our immediate concern is for the well-being of our passengers, crew members, and their families."
In the wake of the crash, the FAA closed all southbound lanes for 24 hours.
The government agency confirmed it is investigating the crash.