Lititz, PA – A single-engine plane crash in Pennsylvania on Sunday has left three family members with severe burns, requiring treatment at a burn center. The plane, a Beechcraft Bonanza, burst into flames after crashing in a parking lot of the Brethren Village retirement community in Lititz.
According to officials, the pilot, Matt White, reported an open door on the aircraft before the crash. White, an executive board member of Venture Jets, was flying his personal plane with four family members on board.
Three of the five occupants were sent to a burn center for treatment, while the other two were released from the hospital on Sunday night. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported that no one was killed in the crash, and no one on the ground was injured.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has opened an investigation into the crash, which will examine the pilot, the aircraft, and the operating environment. Investigators will gather recordings of air traffic control communications, flight tracking data, witness statements, surveillance video, and aircraft maintenance records.
A preliminary report is expected within 30 days, while the full investigation may take 12 to 24 months to complete.
Witnesses described the plane veering to its left before crashing nose-first into the parking lot, followed by an immediate fireball. The cause of the crash remains unknown.
The plane was headed to Springfield, Ohio, when it crashed shortly after takeoff from Lancaster Airport. Residents of the Brethren Village retirement community were briefly required to shelter in place due to the crash.
May God see them through