Plane crashes into homes in Philadelphia, deaths feared

A small plane crashed in Northeast Philadelphia on Friday, prompting a fiery response from emergency crews. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed in a statement that the plane which crashed was a Learjet 55.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said he was offering all state resources to assist in the response.

The crash site is less than 3 miles (4.8 kilometres) from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, which mainly handles business jets and charter flights. Philadelphia’s emergency management office described the incident as a “major incident” and confirmed road closures in the area.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is gathering information about the crash, while the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has not yet released details.

This comes days after a deadly midair collision involving a plane and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter near Washington airport in which 67 people died.