Tragedy Strikes at Statesville Regional Airport: Investigation Underway
A devastating private jet crash at Statesville Regional Airport has resulted in the loss of seven lives, including former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and his family. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is leading the investigation to determine the cause of the accident.
The ill-fated aircraft, a 44-year-old Cessna Citation registered to a company owned by Biffle, went down shortly after takeoff. NTSB investigators arrived in North Carolina on Thursday evening to begin their inquiry into the crash.
The flight, which lasted approximately 10 minutes, ended tragically when the jet collided with the approach light system and a nearby tree line before crashing on the runway. While officials have not yet established who was piloting the plane, they confirmed that three of the passengers, including Biffle, held pilot licenses.
NTSB Board Member Michael Graham stated that the team is in the process of analyzing recordings to ascertain whether a mayday call was made by the pilots. “At this point, we are not aware if there was an actual issue or not. We are studying a lot of things,” Graham explained. “We are trying to get recordings from the various frequencies that the aircraft may have been on and any other witness statements that may have heard anything on the common frequency.”
Weather conditions at the time of the crash are also under scrutiny, though Graham mentioned that it was operating under visual flight rules. However, there was a low ceiling and heavy drizzle, factors that could potentially have contributed to the accident. “It was visual flight rules, but there were low ceilings out there, and there was heavy drizzle at the time. So that is one of the three things that we really mainly look at,” he added.
Investigators have retrieved the cockpit voice recorder, which has been sent to Washington, D.C. for analysis. Meanwhile, Statesville Airport remains closed to allow for the removal of wreckage from the site.
The NTSB anticipates concluding the preliminary investigation within 30 days, although a comprehensive analysis of the crash may take up to a year.
