CNN
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Two World War II-era military planes collided in midair and crashed at Dallas Executive Airport Saturday afternoon, killing all on board.
More than 40 fire and rescue teams were called to the scene after two vintage aircraft — a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and a Bell P-63 King Cobra — crashed during the Wings Airshow in Dallas.
In video footage of the crash, described by the mayor of Dallas as “heartbreaking,” the plane can be seen disintegrating in midair after the collision before hitting the ground within seconds before bursting into flames.
Here’s an update on investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board, who are due to arrive on the scene Sunday.
The FAA said the crash occurred around 1:20 p.m. Saturday. Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson said Saturday that the number of casualties had not yet been determined.
The Allied Pilots Association — the union representing U.S. airline pilots — has identified two pilot retirees and former union members killed in the crash.
Former members Terry Barker and Len Root were crew members of the B-17 Flying Fortress during the air show, APA said on social media.
“Our hearts go out to their family, friends and colleagues, past and present,” the union said. APA provided professional counseling services at its headquarters in Fort Worth following the incident.
Keller Mayor Armin Mizani also announced the death of former Keller, Texas city council member Barker in a Facebook post Sunday morning.
“Keller was devastated when we learned that her husband, father, veteran and former Keller City Councilman Terry Barker was one of the victims of the tragic accident at the Dallas Air Show,” Mizzani wrote.
“Terry Buck was loved by many. He was a friend and someone I often turned to for guidance. Even after retiring from City Council and flying for American Airlines, his love for the community was unmistakable.”
Hank Coats, president and CEO of the Memorial Air Force, an organization that preserves and maintains vintage military aircraft, told reporters at a news conference Saturday that the B-17 “usually has four or five crew members. That’s what’s on the plane.” ,” while the P-63 was a “single-pilot fighter aircraft.”
“I can tell you it’s usually manned,” Coates said. “Until the NTSB allows me to do so, I cannot release the number of people on the list or the names on the list.”
Memorial Air Force determined that both aircraft were located in Houston.
“At this time we have no information on the status of the crew as emergency responders are addressing the incident,” a statement from the group said, adding that it was working with local authorities and the FAA.
No spectators or others on the ground were reportedly injured, although the debris field from the collision included the Dallas Executive Airport grounds, Highway 67 and a nearby strip mall.
The B-17, part of the Memorial Air Force Collection, nicknamed the “Texas Raider,” has been kept in a hanger in Conroe, Texas, near Houston.
It is one of about 45 complete surviving examples of the model, of which only nine were seaworthy.
P-63 is even rarer. About 14 are known to have survived, four of which were airworthy in the United States and one owned by the Memorial Air Force.
Between 1936 and 1945, Boeing, Douglas Aircraft, and Lockheed produced more than 12,000 B-17s, of which nearly 5,000 were lost during the war, and most of the rest were scrapped in the early 1960s. Bell Aircraft produced approximately 3,300 P-63s between 1943 and 1945, primarily for use by the Soviet Air Force during World War II.
The FAA is leading the investigation into Saturday’s airshow crash, but it will be handed over to the NTSB once its team arrives at the scene, Coates said.
On Saturday night, the National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a team to investigate the collision. The team, made up of technical experts regularly dispatched to crash sites, is expected to arrive on Sunday, the agency said.
According to Coates, those who fly the aircraft at the CAF air show are volunteers and follow a rigorous training process. Many of them are airline pilots, retired airline pilots or ex-military pilots.
“The maneuvers they (aircraft) are going through are not dynamic at all,” Coates noted. “It’s what we call a ‘parade bomber.'”
“It’s not about the plane. It’s not,” Coates said. “I can tell you these planes are great planes, they’re safe. They’re well maintained. The pilots are well trained. So it’s hard for me to talk about it because I know all these people, they’re family, they’re good friend.”
mayor johnson tweeted after the crash“As many of you can now see, a terrible tragedy occurred in our city today during an airshow. Many details are currently unknown or unconfirmed.”
“These videos are heartbreaking. Please pray for the souls that took to the skies today to entertain and educate our family,” Johnson said in another tweet.
The Dallas Wings event scheduled for Sunday has been cancelled, according to the organizer’s website.