EL PASO, Texas ( KTSM ) — One person was killed when an airplane that was performing at the Las Cruces Air and Space Expo crashed on Sunday afternoon, Oct. 20.
The crash happened at about 2:30 p.m. Sunday and the rest of the air show was canceled after that.
New Mexico State Police, which is investigating the crash, confirmed that one person was killed in the crash.
Both Las Cruces newspapers reported that it was the plane’s pilot who was killed.
Andy Hume, director of the Las Cruces International Airport, issued a brief statement on the City of Las Cruces Facebook page.
He said there was a “single aircraft incident” during the air show portion of the Las Cruces Air and Space Expo, but said they would not be releasing any further information or taking any questions because the investigation into the incident was just beginning.
Hume did say that they have contacted the family of the air show performer who was involved to come to Las Cruces but did not confirm any injuries.
The City of Las Cruces issued a short news release, saying a participating airplane “went down” at about 2:30 p.m. during the air show.
First responders and airport rescue teams responded to the downed aircraft, the City said. The cause of the crash and the status of the pilot are not available at this time, the City added. The Air and Space Expo was supposed to last until 4 p.m. but was canceled after the incident.
The National Transportation Safety Board said that it is investigating the crash. According to the NTSB, an Extra Flugzeugbau GMBH EA 300/L airplane crashed at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday. The preliminary information is that the plane crashed about a half-mile west of the Las Cruces airport while performing at the air show.
This particular airplane can seat two people.
An NTSB investigator is en route to Las Cruces and is expected to arrive Monday. Once on-site, the investigator will begin the process of documenting the scene and examining the aircraft, according to NTSB. The aircraft will also be recovered and taken to a secure facility for further investigation, NTSB said in its statement.
Witnesses to the crash or those who have surveillance video or other information that could be relevant to the investigation are asked to contact the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov .
The NTSB said it has no role in releasing identities of crash victims or in releasing the extent of injuries. That is handled by local authorities, the agency said.
The NTSB said a preliminary report should be available within 30 days.
This is a developing story and we will update it as soon as we learn more.
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