Private jet with 8 aboard crashes on takeoff in Maine, FAA says

BANGOR, Maine (AP) — A private aircraft carrying eight people crashed on takeoff Sunday night at Maine’s Bangor International Airport, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The Bombardier Challenger 600 crashed around 7:45 p.m., and there was no immediate word on the conditions of those aboard. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.

The crash occurred as New England and much of the country grappled with a massive winter storm. Bangor had undergone steady snowfall Sunday along with many other parts of the country.

Bangor International Airport offers direct flights to cities like Orlando, Florida, Washington, D.C., and Charlotte, North Carolina, is about 200 miles north of Boston.

The vast storm dumped sleet, freezing rain and snow across much of the eastern half of the U.S. over the weekend, halting much air and road traffic and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in the Southeast.

The Bombardier Challenger 600 is a wide-bodied business jet configured for 9 to 11 passengers. It was launched in 1980 as the first private jet with a ‘walk-about cabin’ and remains a popular charter option, according to aircharterservice.com

The Associated Press