5 died, including child, in plane crash at Wright Brothers National Memorial; NTSB looking for witnesses

Investigators are asking the public’s help piecing together what happened before Saturday’s deadly airplane crash at Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills.

Five people, including a child, were onboard when the single-engine Cirrus SR22 crashed into the trees near the monument’s airstrip at 5:18 p.m. before catching fire. There were no survivors.

“We’re here to figure out what happened, why it happened and how we can prevent it from happening again,” Ryan Enders, an investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board, told reporters Sunday.

“if you saw anything, heard anything, have a doorbell camera that might have captured the airplane or even the sounds of the airplane,” the NTSB wants to hear from you, Enders said.

Witnesses reported seeing the plane approach the runway, circle and then on second approach, crash into the trees, National Park Service spokesperson Michael Barber said.

On Sunday afternoon, the charred remains sat on the floor in a thick, wooded area next to the airstrip, while a piece of the plane could be seen high in the pine trees from the runway.

Enders referred questions about the identities of the victims to the state medical examiner’s office while NPS officials said they will likely release names in the coming days.

Enders and another NTSB investigator from Washington arrived at the memorial about noon Sunday and began their on-site investigation, looking at the actions and qualifications of the pilot, the condition of the aircraft and weather and environmental conditions. At the time of the crash, conditions were clear, visibility was about 10 miles and winds were gusting about 16 mph, according to data from First Flight Airport’s weather station.

NTSB and FAA records show the Cirrus SR22, built in 2023, belonged to Pantheon Aviation LLC with a residential address listed in Franklin, North Carolina.

FlightAware.com radar shows the plane left from Pinehurst, North Carolina, at 11:16 a.m. Saturday, landing in Ocracoke about an hour later. The plane left Ocracoke for Dare County Regional Airport in Manteo at 4:22 p.m.. It arrived at 4:44 p.m., then left Manteo at 5:10 p.m.

There were no mayday calls from the plane before the crash, Enders said. The NTSB expects to issue a preliminary report on the crash within 10 days, but the full investigation, including releasing a cause, will take nine months to a year.

The First Flight Airstrip has been the scene of 11 aircraft crashes over the last 40 years, with the last reported fatal crash in 1984, according to the NTSB. The First Flight Airport was established in 1928 and commemorates the site where Orville and Wilbur Wright made their first powered flight on Dec. 17, 1903.

Anyone with information about Saturday’s crash is asked to email the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov