Pilot and passenger are killed when small plane crashes into empty apartment complex

Pilot and passenger are killed when small plane crashes into empty apartment complex shortly after take-off in Georgia

  • Piper PA-28 crashed into Clairmont Hills Townhouses in Georgia, on Wednesday
  • Two people, who were on board the plane from Dekalb-Peachtree, were killed 
  • The PA-28 lost contact after making its first left turn, according to investigators 
  • Six units of the townhouse are declared unsafe due to damage and fuel vapour

A pilot and passenger have been killed after their small plane crashed into a town-house in Georgia.

The Piper PA-28 airplane plummeted into the six-unit Clairmont Hills Townhouses in the Peachwood Circle Complex after departing from the DeKalb-Peachtree Airport in Chamblee, Georgia, on Wednesday morning. 

It shortly lost contact after making its first left turn from Dekalb-Peachtree, NTSB Air Safety Investigators have said. 

A Piper PA-28 is single-engine airplane with two to four seats. 

Two people have died after the Piper PA-28 airplane crashed into Clairmont Hills Townhouses, Peachwood Circle in Georgia, around 10.30am on Wednesday

Firefighters work to extinguish the blaze off Interstate 85 in northeast Atlanta, this morning. A body was retrieved from the plane around 1pm local time in Georgia before another was found at 4pm

Firefighters work to extinguish the blaze off Interstate 85 in northeast Atlanta, this morning. A body was retrieved from the plane around 1pm local time in Georgia before another was found at 4pm

Two people, who were on board the plane, were killed during the crash. It had lost contact The plane lost contact shortly after making its first left turn from leaving DeKalb-Peachtree Airport in Chamblee, Georgia, NTSB Air Safety Investigators said

Two people, who were on board the plane, were killed during the crash. It had lost contact The plane lost contact shortly after making its first left turn from leaving DeKalb-Peachtree Airport in Chamblee, Georgia, NTSB Air Safety Investigators said

While the first victim was found quickly after 1pm, the second was on the plane and only recovered around 4pm, according to DeKalb County Fire Captain Dion Bentley.  

A large section of wall and part of the roof was knocked out of a building at the townhome complex. 

The units have been declared unsafe due to the structural damage and fuel vapour, according to DeKalb County Fire Marshal Joe Cox.

Ricky Nixon lives near the crash site told Fox News: ‘My aunt was basically screaming at my uncle she smelled gas. I went outside. There is just plane pieces everywhere.’

The plane's engine is attached to a crane as officers attempt to retrieve the aircraft which knocked into a large section of wall and townhome complex, this morning

The plane’s engine is attached to a crane as officers attempt to retrieve the aircraft which knocked into a large section of wall and townhome complex, this morning

Officials are pictured among the wreckage at Peachwood which has been declared unsafe due to the structural damage and fuel vapour

Officials are pictured among the wreckage at Peachwood which has been declared unsafe due to the structural damage and fuel vapour

Resident Jared Hauck heard a ‘loud crash that didn’t sound like anything normal’ and went outside to find the ‘plane fuselage on the ground’.       

Neighbor Stephan Kohou told SBTV: ‘I would never imagine something like that happening and it’s really sad.’ 

David Youngpeter, who lives near the townhome said ‘it was too close for comfort’. 

While the plane tore into the house’s brick exterior and left wreckage sprawled across the street, there were no injuries on the ground. 

Authorities investigate the Atlanta suburb where the Piper PA-28 airplane plummeted after allegedly making its first left turn from the airport

Authorities investigate the Atlanta suburb where the Piper PA-28 airplane plummeted after allegedly making its first left turn from the airport

No one was inside the apartment building at the time of the incident.

The weather was foggy and visibility was around 3 miles according to Severe Weather Team 2.   

Six units of the townhouse have been declared unsafe until further notice.

The Red Cross is providing assistance to families who were impacted.            

Crew arrive at the Claimont Hills Townhouses to try and retrieve the aircraft which still remains inside the building

Crew arrive at the Claimont Hills Townhouses to try and retrieve the aircraft which still remains inside the building

The Piper PA-28 has dozens of models and is designed for flight training or to be used for in-flight training (file image)

The Piper PA-28 has dozens of models and is designed for flight training or to be used for in-flight training (file image)

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk