7 Fatalities Says The FAA, As BIA Officials Hand Plane Crash Investigation Over To The NTSB

Officials with the Bangor International Airport held a press conference Monday morning, briefly updating the situation that caused the airport to close until at least Wednesday.

According to initial reports from the FAA and National Transportation and Safety Board, just before 8 PM Sunday, a Bombardier Challenger 600 carrying 8 people crashed on runway 33 at the airport, as it was trying to depart in the storm. Itended up on its roof before ultimately catching fire.

Read More: Investigating The Bangor Airport Jet Crash: What We Know

BIA Director Jose Saavedra says they are awaiting the arrival of officials from the NTSB and the FAA for guidance on what the next steps will be. He would not comment on the condition of the passengers and crew or if anyone had been transported to a local hospital.

The FAA, however, has released its initial report on the crash of Bombardier CL-600-2B16, with the registration number N10KJ.

In that report, they indicate there were 7 fatalities involved, with one member of the flight crew in serious condition.

They said the aircraft "crashed under unknown circumstances on departure, came to rest inverted and caught fire."

Saavedra did say that there was a professional crew of now and ice removal personnel at the airport Sunday night, during the storm that made its way through the area, and that other commercial and private aircraft carriers had been landed and departed up until the time of the crash.

He also said there had been a significant number of delays or cancellations on the board before the crash took place, due to the weather.

Saaveda indicated that the airport's emergency protocols were activated, and emergency crews were on the scene of the impact within moments of the jet crashing.

When asked who owned the jet and where it was heading, Saavedra declined to answer, stating that the NTSB was taking over the case, and no comments would be made until they gave the green light.

While a team of NTSB investigators is expected to arrive in Bangor at some point in the next day or so, travel across the nation has been impacted by the storm and could cause some delays in getting to the area.

In the meantime, NTSB released a statement earlier in the morning, posted on the BIA Facebook Page.

"During the on-scene phase of the investigative process, the NTSB does not determine or speculate about the cause of the accident.

The NTSB has no role in the release of the identities of accident victims and/or the extent and number of injuries, nor does it release the identities of those injured or killed; that’s handled by local authorities."

Saavedra did say that local safety officials have been at the scene of the crash, since it occurred, to secure the scene as the plane and all its contents must remain in place, on the runway, until the NTSB team collects evidence and conducts its investigation.

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It's unknown if current weather conditions will affect the investigation at all, as snow and wind are expected to remain an issue in the Bangor area for most of the afternoon.

Upon their arrival, they will be gathering data to put into their report, including

"Flight track data, recordings of any air traffic control communications, aircraft maintenance records, weather forecasts and actual weather and lighting conditions around the time of the accident, information about the pilot, including their license, ratings and recency of flight experience, 72-hour background of the pilot to determine if there were any issues that could have affected the pilot’s ability to safely operate the flight, witness statements, electronic devices that could contain information relevant to the investigation and any available surveillance video, including from doorbell cameras."

For travellers who were unable to depart from Bangor due to the airport closing, Saavedra recommends they reach out to their airline carriers to see what can be done.

Bangor International Airport is expected to remain closed at least through the middle of the week.