• News
  • Film and TV
  • Music
  • Tech
  • Features
  • Celebrity
  • Politics
  • Weird
  • Community
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content
Plane crashes outside mall killing pilot, 87, travelling to his family for Thanksgiving

Home> News> US News

Published 09:01 24 Nov 2023 GMT

Plane crashes outside mall killing pilot, 87, travelling to his family for Thanksgiving

The plane crashed outside a strip mall in Plano, Texas, around 6pm on November 21

Kit Roberts

Kit Roberts

A veteran pilot was killed in a plane crash while flying home to see his family for thanksgiving.

Elzie Monroe McDonald, 87, had been flying home for thanksgiving when he crash landed his plane Mooney M20 outside a strip mall in Plano, Texas at around 6pm on November 21, the Texas Department of Public Safety has said.

McDonald was only a few days away from his 88th birthday when the crash happened, according to his family.

He had been flying to the Dallas area to visit them over the Thanksgiving period.

Advert

McDonald had been attempting a go-around at the time of the incident. This is an aborted attempt at a landing where a plane flies back up as it approaches its landing.

But instead the plane crashed nose first into the parking lot in a terrifying fireball.

Video from the incident shows the single-engine plane crashing close to the Nail Addiction salon, narrowly missing an employee.

Fortunately, the employee was physically unharmed in the incident, but has been left mentally impacted.

Advert

The salon owner told NBC5: "He’s safe but he’s mentally affected.

Elzie Monroe McDonald was killed in a plane crash.
Facebook

"He and his wife couldn’t sleep last night. I and my wife couldn’t sleep last night, either. Everyone is still very shocked from the incident."

He was not the only person to be mentally affect by the crash. Nancy Procaccini owns Mama’s Daughters’ Diner next door, and also couldn't sleep after the crash.

Advert

She said: "I love my staff. And I love my customers dearly. And it was just so close.

"You know, you could picture yourself being almost in a wreck and it’s like, you can almost feel like you were hit. That’s the way it felt for me."

She added: "If it would've hit just a few more feet, I had people sitting right there: Children, mothers, I had one of my staff members, been with me 35 years sitting there.

The plane crashed at a strip mall in Texas.
WFAA

Advert

"That's what gets you. When you've got so many people in your house—mama's house, that you love."

Witnesses reported hearing a loud boom and seeing the right wing of the aircraft dip before it crashed.

Only McDonald was on board the plane.

The aircraft came down less than a mile away from the Air-Park Dallas Airport. This is an airfield which does not have an air traffic control tower on site.

Advert

It has been reported that McDonald has received an FAA Master Pilot Award. This is given to pilots who have flown for 50 years or more.

It is understood that the crash also caused a car on the ground to catch fire, but fortunately there was not anyone inside the vehicle.

Featured Image Credit: 5NBC

Topics: News, US News, Texas

Kit Roberts
Kit Roberts

Kit joined UNILAD in 2023 as a community journalist. They have previously worked for StokeonTrentLive, the Daily Mirror, and the Daily Star.

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

4 hours ago
6 hours ago
7 hours ago
  • 4 hours ago

    Diners left speechless after common menu abbreviation mistake left them with huge bill

    The bill left people divided

    News
  • 6 hours ago

    Travelers issued warning over 'airport theory' TikTok trend that is making people miss flights

    The trend might feel brilliant if you succeed and awful if you fail

    News
  • 7 hours ago

    Teen camp counselors reveal chilling moment they wrote girls' names on their bodies as Texas flood death toll rises

    So far, at least 27 campers have lost their lives

    News
  • 7 hours ago

    Body language expert reveals what really happened as Emmanuel Macron gets 'rejected' by wife in awkward moment

    Brigitte Macron apparently rejected her husband's hand... again

    News
  • Emotional father details finding body of young boy while looking for his missing daughter in Texas floods
  • Horrifying timelapse footage shows just how quickly Texas flash flood happened as search continues for missing girls
  • Why Texas officials blame Trump's NWS for tragic flash floods as death toll rises to 82
  • White House address Texas officials' claim Trump's NWS is to blame for flash floods as death toll rises to more than 100