(Trends Wide) — Two World War II-era military planes collided in mid-air and went down at Dallas Executive Airport during an air show Saturday afternoon, killing all on board.
More than 40 fire rescue units responded to the scene after the two vintage planes — a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and a Bell P-63 Kingcobra — crashed during the Wings Over Dallas airshow.
In video footage of the crash that the Dallas mayor described as “heartbreaking,” the planes are seen falling apart in midair after the collision, then impacting the ground within seconds, before exploding.
These are the most recent developments before National Transportation Safety Board investigators arrive on scene this Sunday.
The B-17 Flying Fortress, one of the planes that crashed at the Dallas Executive Airport airshow on Saturday, November 12, 2022, normally had a crew of 4 to 5 people. (Credit: Nathaniel Ross/AP)
What we know about the deceased crew members
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the crash occurred around 1:20 p.m. Saturday. The number of victims has yet to be confirmed, according to Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson on Saturday.
The Allied Pilots Association (APA) — the union representing American Airlines pilots — identified two retired pilots and former union members among those killed in the collision.
Former members Terry Barker and Len Root were part of the B-17 Flying Fortress crew during the airshow, the APA said on social media.
“Our hearts go out to their families, friends and colleagues past and present,” the union said. The APA offers career counseling services at its Fort Worth headquarters following the incident.
At a news conference Saturday, Hank Coates, president and CEO of the Memorial Air Force, an organization that preserves and maintains vintage military aircraft, told reporters that the B-17 “normally has a crew of four to five. That was what was on the plane,” while the P-63 is a “single-pilot fighter.”
“I can tell you it had a normal crew,” Coates said. “I cannot release the number of people on the record or the names in the report until the NTSB gives me permission to do so.”
Debris from two planes that crashed during the air show. The B-17 was one of only 45 complete surviving examples of the model, which was produced by Boeing and other aircraft manufacturers during World War II. (Credit: LM Otero/AP)
The Memorial Air Force identified both planes as being based in Houston.
“We currently have no information on the status of the flight crews as emergency services are working on the accident,” a statement from the group said, adding that it is collaborating with local authorities and the FAA.
No injured onlookers or other people on the ground were reported, although the debris field from the collision includes the grounds of the Dallas Executive Airport, Highway 67 and a nearby shopping mall.
Rare planes involved
The B-17 was part of the Memorial Air Force collection, nicknamed the “Texas Raiders,” and had been stored in a hangar in Conroe, Texas, near Houston.
It was one of 45 complete surviving examples of the model, of which only nine were airworthy.
The P-63 is even rarer. Some 14 machines are known to survive, with four airworthy in the United States, including one owned by the Memorial Air Force.
Boeing, Douglas Aircraft, and Lockheed produced more than 12,000 B-17s between 1936 and 1945, with almost 5,000 lost during the war and most of the rest scrapped by the early 1960s. Bell Aircraft produced about 3,300 P-63s between 1943 and 1945, and were used primarily by the Soviet Air Force in World War II.
A frame from video taken at the airshow shows smoke rising after the crash. (Credit: Kyler Tamkin)
NTSB sends team to crash site
The FAA was leading the investigation into Saturday’s air show crash, but it was scheduled to be turned over to the NTSB once its team arrived on scene, Coates said.
This Saturday night, the NTSB said it will send a team to investigate the collision. The team, consisting of technical experts who are regularly dispatched to the plane crash sites, is expected to arrive on Sunday, the agency said.
According to Coates, the people who fly the aircraft at CAF air shows are volunteers and follow a strict training process. Many of them are airline pilots, retired airline pilots, or retired military pilots.
“The maneuvers that (the aircraft) were going through were not dynamic at all,” Coates said. “It was what we call ‘Bombers on Parade’.”
“This is not about the aircraft. It just isn’t,” Coates said. “I can tell you that the planes are excellent planes, they are safe. They are very well maintained. The pilots are very well trained. So it’s hard for me to talk about it, because I know all these people, they’re family and they’re good friends.”
mayor johnson He said in a tweet after the accident: “As many of you have already seen, we have had a terrible tragedy in our city today during an air show. Many details are still unknown or cannot be confirmed at this time.”
“The videos are heartbreaking. Please pray for the souls who took to heaven to entertain and educate our families today,” Johnson said in another tweet.
The Wings Over Dallas event scheduled for this Sunday has been cancelled, according to the organizer’s website.
Trends Wide’s Pete Muntean, Rebekah Riess, Emma Tucker and Keith Allen contributed to this report.
