FAA and NTSB launch investigation after a Mooney M20TN aircraft goes down near Upper Cumberland Regional Airport in remote area.
Sparta, Tennessee, April 27:
A tragic plane crash near a rural Tennessee airport over the weekend claimed the lives of all three people on board, authorities confirmed.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced that a Mooney M20TN aircraft crashed south of Upper Cumberland Regional Airport in Sparta around noon local time on Saturday, April 26.
Airport officials told NBC News, Fox News, and ABC affiliate WKRN that all three occupants were killed in the crash. The small, single-engine plane had departed from Alabama before its ill-fated descent.
Dean Selby, director of Upper Cumberland Regional Airport, said that around 11:50 a.m., airport personnel received reports of a plane going down. Shortly afterward, Memphis Air Traffic Control confirmed losing contact with an aircraft that was descending into Upper Cumberland.
Emergency responders located the crash site, described as a remote grassy area near a tree line about a mile south of the airport. Photos showed a significant presence of rescue vehicles at the scene.
The FAA arrived a few hours after the crash and will investigate the incident in coordination with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which will lead the inquiry.
Selby stated that the names of the victims will be withheld until their families are notified.
Upper Cumberland Regional Airport has not yet issued a public statement.