"I won't make it": Disturbing audio reveals moments before plane crash that killed five Canadians
The pilot of a small plane with five Canadians on board was trying to land the aircraft when it crashed behind a Costco in Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday night.
Fox News reports that the plane, a Piper PA-32R, was travelling from Ontario with the pilot, an adult, and three children onboard. Metropolitan Nashville Police confirmed the incident that “five persons on board the airplane perished in the crash.”
5 persons on board the airplane perished in the crash. The FAA is on scene. The NTSB will arrive later today.
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) March 5, 2024
Videos shared online show that the troubled plane had been circling before it crashed by the side of a busy highway, where it burst into flames.
❌✈️ 5 dead from a small plane crash in Nashville, Tennesse pic.twitter.com/fsKlDU34mk
— HOT SPOT (@HotSpotHotSpot) March 5, 2024
One horrified resident shared a clip of the plane in flames by the side of the highway.
Local Nashville, Tennessee resident reporting a plane crash. pic.twitter.com/be0rcnRzcm
— 𝕔hi𝓁𝓁iຖ໐iˢ (@chiIIum) March 5, 2024
LiveATC.net recorded the exchange between air traffic control and the pilot, where the latter revealed that the plane was experiencing engine failure.
“Are you trying to land at John Tune?” the air traffic controller asked, referring to John C. Tune Airport in Davidson County.
“My engine’s turned off. I’m at 1,600. I’m going to be landing; I don’t know where,” responded the pilot.
The air traffic controller then declared an emergency on behalf of the pilot and asked again if the pilot could see the airport in sight.
“Yes, I have the runway in sight,” said the pilot. “I’m too far away, I won’t make it.”
HEARTBREAKING AUDIO 💔’Won’t make it’: Recordings detail harrowing moments before deadly Nashville plane crash >> https://t.co/vOgT0AekDy pic.twitter.com/B5owyUOTSX
— FoxNashville (@FOXNashville) March 5, 2024
During a press conference, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) air safety investigator Aaron McCarter confirmed that the pilot “reported a catastrophic complete loss of engine power.”
“No emergency was declared by the pilot. However, ATC, which was in communications with the pilot, declared an emergency on the pilot’s behalf and offered assistance and a landing back at John C. Tune airport,” he said. “The airplane passed overhead, made a U-turn and impacted the road, the shoulder behind me.”
CCTV footage from a nearby home shows the plane circling the area just before it crashed.
Just spoke with a Nashville resident who shared this video exclusively with @WKRN — it shows a plane’s final moments in the air, before it comes to a crash.
You can see it circling — disappearing in the left corner — followed by a flash of light. https://t.co/bj0YUnRO6Y pic.twitter.com/AtAgwZCxXU
— Peyton Kennedy (@peytonTVkennedy) March 5, 2024
He said the wreckage has been transferred to a facility in Springfield, Tennessee, where they will “determine what caused the engine failure.”
In an email to Daily Hive, Global Affairs Canada confirmed that it’s “aware of reports of the deaths of five Canadians in Tennessee” and that it’s in touch with local authorities.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the victims. Our thoughts are with their families and their loved ones,” they stated. “Due to privacy considerations, no further information can be disclosed.”
Follow Channels and Categories