A single-engine turboprop airplane crashed shortly after noon Saturday in a Brooklyn Park neighborhood, near the end of its flight from Des Moines en route to Anoka County-Blaine Airport.
The extent of injuries in the crash, if any, was unknown as of early Saturday afternoon. The FAA said it was unclear how many people were on the plane.
The aircraft reportedly came down at about 12:20 p.m. near the intersection of Kyle Avenue N., Noble Parkway and W. River Road, setting a house on fire. One neighbor said they believed the home’s occupants were on vacation.
Firefighters worked to put out a fire that engulfed a house after it was struck by a small plane in Brooklyn Park on Saturday. (Alex Kormann/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
According to the FAA and flight records, the Socata TBM 700 left Des Moines International Airport at 11:12 a.m. and was scheduled to land in Blaine sometime between 12:11 p.m. and 12:28 p.m., after a northward flight of 280 miles. The plane is registered to DGW Enterprises of Edina.
The National Transportation Safety Board will be in charge of the investigation, assisted by the FAA.
Henry Tita, who lives near the crash site, said he was standing outside getting ready to go to his job as a building engineer when he heard what sounded like a plane circling overhead.
He said it was too cloudy to see the plane, but it sounded alarmingly low.
“Within five seconds, I heard a very loud sound,” Tita said. “I told my in-laws that plane has crashed.”