{"id":295996,"date":"2017-02-21T05:58:32","date_gmt":"2017-02-21T05:58:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=295996"},"modified":"2017-02-21T05:58:32","modified_gmt":"2017-02-21T05:58:32","slug":"melbourne-plane-crash-five-killed-as-aircraft-hits-shopping-centre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2017\/02\/melbourne-plane-crash-five-killed-as-aircraft-hits-shopping-centre\/","title":{"rendered":"Melbourne plane crash: Five killed as aircraft hits shopping centre"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"story-body__introduction\">Five people have died after a light plane crashed into a shopping centre in Melbourne, Australia.<\/p>\n<p>The charter flight appeared to have had a &#8220;catastrophic engine failure&#8221; shortly after taking off from the small Essendon Airport, said Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Leane.<\/p>\n<p>Everyone on board is believed dead.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;At this stage the advice we have is there are no fatalities other than on the aircraft itself,&#8221; the commissioner said.<\/p>\n<p>The shopping centre was not open to the public at the time.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Looking at the fireball, it is incredibly lucky that no-one was at the back of those stores or in the car park of the stores, that no-one was even hurt,&#8221; he added.<\/p>\n<p>Local media reported US nationals were among those on the plane, which was bound for Tasmania&#8217;s King Island.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media-landscape has-caption full-width\"><span class=\"image-and-copyright-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"responsive-image__img js-image-replace\" src=\"http:\/\/ichef-1.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/6789\/production\/_94750562_970bc5fb-7931-43cd-bf58-5ef2047f32e6.jpg\" alt=\"Scene of damage at the shopping centre in Essendon, Melbourne (21 Feb 2017)\" width=\"976\" height=\"600\" data-highest-encountered-width=\"624\" \/><\/span><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"media-landscape has-caption full-width\"><span class=\"image-and-copyright-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"responsive-image__img js-image-replace\" src=\"http:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/2071\/production\/_94750380_8fdf85e5-de19-42c9-9ce7-e8bf5d953731.jpg\" alt=\"Firefighters at the scene of the crash near Essendon Airport (21 Feb 2017)\" width=\"976\" height=\"600\" data-highest-encountered-width=\"624\" \/><\/span><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;Today is a desperately sad day,&#8221; Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;A number of people have died as a result of what is the worst civil aviation accident that our state has seen for 30 years.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>A spokeswoman for Spotlight, a retailer in the complex, said the plane crashed into its rear warehouse but all staff were safe.<\/p>\n<p>The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said it would investigate how the twin-engine Beechcraft B200 King Air crashed soon after 09:00 local time on Tuesday (22:00 GMT Monday).<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media-landscape has-caption full-width\"><span class=\"image-and-copyright-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"responsive-image__img js-image-replace\" src=\"http:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/14E01\/production\/_94750558_59fe815c-e1c4-47d7-baae-607cff66f4f5.jpg\" alt=\"Firefighters at the scene of the crash near Essendon Airport (21 Feb 2017)\" width=\"976\" height=\"600\" data-highest-encountered-width=\"624\" \/><\/span><\/figure>\n<p>Local media named the pilot as 63-year-old Max Quartermain. He had decades of flying experience and an &#8220;impeccable safety record&#8221;, according to the website of charter company Corporate and Leisure Aviation, which he owned with his wife.<\/p>\n<p>Essendon Airport, mostly used by light planes, is about 13km (8 miles) north-west of central Melbourne.<\/p>\n<p>It has been closed, but the city&#8217;s main hubs for commercial air traffic &#8211; Melbourne Airport and Avalon Airport &#8211; remain open.<\/p>\n<p class=\"story-body__crosshead\"><strong>Chaotic aftermath<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The crash sent black smoke high into the air and ignited a blaze that required more than 60 firefighters to bring under control.<\/p>\n<p>Police shut the adjacent Tullamarine Freeway after witnesses spotted debris from the plane including a wheel on the road. The area around the shops was evacuated, and three nearby schools were closed.<\/p>\n<p>Video showed thick smoke and fire at the wreckage scene.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media-landscape has-caption full-width\"><span class=\"image-and-copyright-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"responsive-image__img js-image-replace\" src=\"http:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/BCB1\/production\/_94750384_515e47a6-b408-4b9f-bec6-9fbc8396fb84.jpg\" alt=\"An aircraft wheel on the road near the crash site in Melbourne (21 Feb 2017)\" width=\"976\" height=\"600\" data-highest-encountered-width=\"624\" \/><\/span><\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;Immediately I could tell it was something horrific, the explosion would have gone 30m [100ft] high and ballooned upwards in red and black,&#8221; witness Mikey Cahill told the Herald Sun.<\/p>\n<p>Another witness, Daniel May, said he was waiting for the shopping centre to open when the plane came down.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;There was an orange explosion and then smoke,&#8221; he told The Age. &#8220;Emergency crews rushed very quickly in, soon after, and I left the area.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media-landscape has-caption full-width\"><span class=\"image-and-copyright-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"responsive-image__img js-image-replace\" src=\"http:\/\/ichef-1.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/1969\/production\/_94750560_998f69f8-e972-4a32-8390-9a84e89a7df3.jpg\" alt=\"Employees of local businesses in Melbourne (21 Feb 2017)\" width=\"976\" height=\"549\" data-highest-encountered-width=\"624\" \/><\/span><\/figure>\n<p>Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said he was &#8220;deeply saddened&#8221; as he offered condolences to the families of the victims.<\/p>\n<p>King Island, popular for its beaches and dairy farms, lies 245km (150 miles) south of Melbourne in Bass Strait.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211;<\/p>\n<p>Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Five people have died after a light plane crashed into a shopping centre in Melbourne, Australia. The charter flight appeared to have had a &#8220;catastrophic engine failure&#8221; shortly after taking off from the small Essendon Airport, said Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Leane. Everyone on board is believed dead. &#8220;At this stage the advice we [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[107],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Melbourne plane crash: Five killed as aircraft hits shopping centre - Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. 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