ALCOA, Tenn — UPDATE (Jan. 12): The National Transportation Safety Board released a report about the Dec. 16 plane crash that led to the death of Charles Schneider, the CEO of MyGoFlight.
In the report, they said the pilot was conducting practice approaches when the plane went down. Air traffic controllers told the pilot to extend their downwind and issued a traffic advisory for another Airbus plane. The pilot was told to follow the Airbus and was cleared for landing, and the pilot said he saw it.
Around 1.5 miles of the final approach, at around 1,000 feet, officials said they lost the radar target of the plane. The report said responders at the crash scene found the pilot outside of the plane with third-degree burns. They said he was conscious and responded to verbal commands.
He said he was returning from a 45-minute flight and encountered wake turbulence, according to the report. He said the plan lost lift, rolled inverted, and so he activated the plane's parachute. He later said that the plane burst into fire when it hit the ground, and his passenger climbed over and helped him out of the plane.
Bystanders put the fire out with fire extinguishers, according to the report.
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Original: Blount County released 911 calls after a small plane crashed in mid-December at the Amazon distribution center construction site in Alcoa, killing a Colorado CEO.
Crews responded to a small airplane crash near Alcoa Highway the morning of December 16, and crews took two people UT Medical Center, according to the Alcoa Police Department.
Officials with MyGoFlight said one of those people was Charles Schneider, the CEO of the company. They said he was traveling for business on the single-engine aircraft before it went down. They also said that the cause of the crash was still unknown and that it went down at around 9:20 a.m.
Officials with the company said that he died Friday morning. Information about the other person on the plane was not immediately available.
On January 3, Blount County released 911 calls that came in shortly after the crash. Some witnesses said they watched as the plane went down and caught fire.
You can listen to those calls below:
The Blount County dispatch said Thursday that a two-seater plane crashed off Alcoa Highway at the site of a new Amazon distribution center that's under construction.
The Alcoa Police Department, the Alcoa Fire Department, the Blount County Sheriff's Office, and the American Medical Response arrived at the scene.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and MyGoFlight, the single-engine craft was a Cirrus SR22. The FAA said it crashed around 9:20 a.m. near McGhee Tyson Airport, and two people were aboard the plane.
Incident response crews from McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base and other agencies also responded to the scene.
The FAA said it and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate, with the NTSB taking charge.
NTSB said the preliminary report is expected to publish 15 days after the accident.
At this early stage of the investigation, NTSB does not state a cause. Investigations currently take between 12 and 24 months to complete, NTSB said.
Cirrus Aircraft released the following statement in regards to Thursday's small plane crash:
"There was an off-airport Cirrus SR Series aircraft accident in Knoxville involving two persons this morning. The aircraft involved is not owned or operated by Cirrus Aircraft. Our immediate thoughts and prayers are with the two persons involved, their families and all those affected. Out of respect for those involved and as the initial investigation begins, we will not comment about the particulars of today’s accident or participate in any speculation as to the cause of the accident. Cirrus Aircraft is actively supporting all appropriate authorities in the investigation.”
FAA has now confirmed that one person died and another is suffering from serious injuries after the plane crash.
According to FAA, the plane was on approach to the airport.
This is a developing story that will be updated as more information becomes available.