First responders work the scene after a plane crashed in the parking lot of a retirement community in Manheim Township, Pa., Sunday, March 9, 2025. (Logan Gehman/LNP/LancasterOnline via AP)

- A small plane crashed near Lancaster Airport, igniting a fire that damaged multiple cars but spared lives on the ground.
- The pilot had reported an open door before the crash; air traffic control urged the plane to pull up moments before impact.
- The FAA is investigating, following another fatal air crash in Philadelphia last month.
Share
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
A single-engine airplane carrying five people crashed and burst into flames Saturday in the parking lot of a retirement community near a small airport in suburban Pennsylvania, and everyone on board survived, officials and witnesses said.
Plane Crash South of Lancaster Airport
The fiery crash happened around 3 p.m. just south of Lancaster Airport in Manheim Township, police Chief Duane Fisher told reporters at an evening briefing. All five victims were taken to hospitals in unknown condition. Nobody on the ground was hurt, the chief said.
Brian Pipkin was driving nearby when he noticed the small plane climbing before it suddenly veered to the left.
“And then it went down nose first,” he told The Associated Press. “There was an immediate fireball.”
Pipkin called 911 and then drove to the crash site, where he recorded video of black smoke billowing from the plane’s mangled wreckage and multiple cars engulfed in flames in a parking lot at Brethren Village. He said the plane narrowly missed hitting a three-story building at the sprawling retirement community about 75 miles (120 km) west of Philadelphia.
A fire truck from the airport arrived within minutes, and more first responders followed quickly.
“It was so smoky and it was so hot,” Pipkin said. “They were really struggling to get the fire out.” A dozen parked cars were damaged, Fisher said.
The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed there were five people aboard the Beechcraft Bonanza.
Air traffic control audio captured the pilot reporting that the aircraft “has an open door, we need to return for a landing.” An air traffic controller is heard clearing the plane to land, before saying, “Pull up!” Moments later, someone can be heard saying the aircraft was “down just behind the terminal in the parking lot street area.”
The FAA said it will investigate.
The crash comes about a month after seven people were killed when an air ambulance burst into flames after crashing onto a busy Philadelphia street.
RELATED TOPICS:
Gov. Newsom Offers $50K Reward in 2022 Kings County Homicide
17 hours ago
Fresno ‘Powers Up’ the Nation’s Largest Combined Solar and Battery Storage Project
18 hours ago
Trump Admin Asserts COVID-19 Originated in Chinese Lab, Targets Fauci
18 hours ago
Vendors Back at Fresno’s Art Hop? Survey Wants to Know What You Think
19 hours ago
Iran Says Nuclear Deal Is Possible if Washington Is Realistic
19 hours ago
49ers Look to Strengthen Depleted Defense in NFL Draft
19 hours ago
Habit Burger & Grill Quietly Drops Impossible Burger From Menu
19 hours ago


Fresno County Ending ‘Squaw Valley’ Fight After Latest Court Ruling

Gov. Newsom Offers $50K Reward in 2022 Kings County Homicide

Fresno ‘Powers Up’ the Nation’s Largest Combined Solar and Battery Storage Project

Trump Admin Asserts COVID-19 Originated in Chinese Lab, Targets Fauci
