NASHVILLE, TN – Five individuals on board a single-engine plane were killed on Monday night following the plane’s crash near an interstate highway in Nashville, Tennessee, according to authorities.
Don Aaron, a spokesman for the Metro Nashville Police Department, stated that the pilot radioed an emergency call to John C. Tune Airport around 7:40 p.m. The pilot reported engine trouble and received clearance for an emergency landing. However, a little later, the pilot communicated that the aircraft wouldn’t make it to the airport.
Network LiveATC.net made the radio communication between the pilot and air traffic control publicly accessible. Initially, the pilot announced, “My engine shut down,” after which the control center asked if the pilot was trying to land at Johnson. The pilot confirmed the aircraft engine’s failure and expressed uncertainty about the plane’s landing location.
Air traffic control suggested declaring an emergency and asked if the pilot could see the airport runway. The pilot confirmed sighting the runway, only to later express doubt about reaching it.
Around 7:30 p.m., a radio communication from the Tennessee Highway Patrol referred to a “fully engulfed” single-engine aircraft. A social media video, shared by a local Nashville resident, seems to capture the blazing plane post-crash on the highway shoulder.
The plane caught fire upon crashing into a grassy median, located just off Interstate 40 and behind a city Costco on the western side. The crash site was approximately three miles south of the general aviation airport. “5 persons onboard the airplane perished in the crash,” the police later shared on social media.
Kendra Loney, the Metro Fire Department Public Information Officer, shared that crews quickly collected scattered pieces from the wreckage and secured the area for drivers. He noted that there were no injuries among the interstate drivers.
Authorities added that no damage was inflicted on ground vehicles or buildings. They are working to determine the flight’s origin.