Five dead in Calif. small plane crash

Rescuers pulled five bodies from the wreckage of a small plane that crashed into an orchard in central California after vanishing from radar, local and federal authorities said Sunday. The debris-field of the crash was almost a quarter-mile in length and it was found in an almond orchard at the southwest of the intersection of South Allen and Panama lanes in detached Kern County.

Five bodies of the dead passengers have been recovered amidst the wreckage of the plane. “It’s going to affect a smaller community, I’m told, (far) north of Bakersfield”.

The plane departed from Reid-Hillview Airport in San Jose and was headed to Henderson Executive Airport in Clark County, which is located just outside Las Vegas, Nevada.

FAA records list an address for an owner of the plane.

The Sheriff’s Office, Bakersfield Police Department, California Highway Patrol and Kern County Fire Department responded to the area and conducted a ground search, the release said. That was hours after the pilot sent a mayday call and the plan disappeared from radar.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board have begun an investigation, officials said.

“The NTSB is in charge of the investigation”, he said.

‘It typically takes the agency months if not longer to determine a probable cause for an accident’.

Carpenter said that they aren’t sure how many were onboard the aircraft when it crashed and he’s not sure if weather was a factor.