The final moments aboard a doomed single-engine airplane that crashed onto I-40 outside of Nashville on Monday night were captured on audio transmissions with the airport control tower.
The Metro Nashville Police said five people died when the plane crashed off of the eastbound lanes just past the Charlotte Pk. exit at around 7:45 p.m.
"My engine turned off... I'm too far away, I won't make it," the pilot told air traffic controllers in an audio recording obtained by the Daily Mail.
"I'm at 1,600 (feet)... I'm going to be landing, I don't know where," he continued.
Small plane crashes along I-40 in Nashville, TN. Multiple fatalities. pic.twitter.com/vjPtcRBKFB
— News Now 24🌐 (@GlobalNewsNow24) March 5, 2024
The plane crashed a short time later, about three miles from the airport.
The plane didn't hit any vehicles as it crashed but video from a traffic camera showed the plane burst into a huge fireball upon impact.
Kendra Loney, a spokesperson with the Nashville Fire Department, told the Tennessean that the crash was "catastrophic."
BREAKING: A single-engine airplane has crashed off the eastbound lanes of I-40 just past the Charlotte Pk exit. Several persons on board are deceased. Work continues to determine from where the plane originated. pic.twitter.com/6tyBa3UCpB
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) March 5, 2024
All of the victims at the crash site were aboard the plane, and their identities were not immediately released.
Plane tracking site FlightAware reported the plane had taken off from Mount Sterling, Kentucky around 7:20 p.m. and was headed to Nashville.
Police said the FAA was on the scene and the NTSB would be there later on Tuesday to start an investigation.
