Firefighters and police are at the scene of a fiery plane crash that killed two onboard the small aircraft Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023, at Van Nuys Airport. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
A single-engine airplane crashed at Van Nuys Airport on Wednesday morning, Aug. 2, killing both men aboard, after the pilot had told the airfield’s control tower the aircraft had suffered a loss of power, according to authorities and a recording of the conversation.
The pilot declared the plane was “having some power loss” but declined the assistance of firefighters meeting the plane on the tarmac, because “we are landing right now,” according to archived air-traffic-control communications.
The tower informed the pilot he was clear to land on either runway.
Moments later, the pilot made a brief yell, then later an air-traffic controller acknowledged the collision: “We’re on the phone with the crash people right now.”
The tower recommended that other pilots land at nearby Burbank or Whiteman airports.
At 10:37 a.m., firefighters were dispatched to the airport after the Cessna’s nose pounded into the tarmac’s ground.
“The firefighters jumped into action very quickly,” said Capt. Erik Scott of the Los Angeles Fire Department during an afternoon press conference. “Tragically, the occupants, two adult males, were determined dead. This was a very high-impact crash that erupted into flames.”
Foam was deployed to try and put out the intense flames from aviation fuel, Scott said.
An airport police officer was nearby when the crash occurred.
One runway was closed for 30 minutes, while the other one remained open, and there were no major impacts to airport operations, said Capt. Karla Rodriguez of the airport police.
The plane was a 2015 Czech Sport Aircraft Sport Cruiser, Federal Aviation Administration records show.
“The FAA and (the) National Transportation Safety Board will investigate,” the FAA said. “The NTSB will be in charge of the investigation and will provide further updates.”
Data on FlightAware, a third party that tracks flights, shows a plane whose registration comes back to a CSA Sport Cruiser doing touch-and-go loops toward the east end of the airport, but making a much sharper left-hand turn after lifting off for the third time and failing to gain altitude.
FlightAware data also indicated that the plane had taken off for a 90-minute flight at around 7 a.m. The plane went north, toward Santa Clarita.
On Monday and Tuesday, the plane logged eight flights, each day, including two to and from Camarillo.
Originally published at Nathaniel Percy, Emily Holshouser
