Two Men Killed in Keene Plane Crash Were Both ‘Pilot Rated,’ NTSB Says

Oct. 24, 2022

Oct. 23—The two men killed when the small plane they were in crashed into an apartment building in Keene on Friday were both pilot rated, an official with the National Transportation Safety Board said Sunday.

The Federal Aviation Administration had previously said a single-engine Beechcraft Sierra aircraft crashed into a building north of Keene Dillant-Hopkins Airport in Keene just before 7 p.m. Friday. City officials said no one was injured in the building hit by the plane.

On Sunday, Tim Monville, a senior air safety investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board ( NTSB) said the aircraft took off from Runway 2, located roughly a half mile from the crash site, and communications indicate the pilot intended to remain in a traffic pattern, but did not specify his exact intentions.

"That was recorded audio. One of the occupants (of the plane) said that," said Monville. "When I say around the pattern, you're basically flying a circuit around the runway, to either do an approach or do a landing. I don't know what their intention was, so I can't expand upon that."

There were no communications mentioning problems with the plane, Monville said.

Officials have not released the names of the victims to the public.

It is still not clear how or why the plane crashed.

Bystanders' photos and videos posted online show a small apartment building engulfed in flames after the crash.

Monville said investigators have video from two different cameras in the area that captured the crash and the ensuing fireball.

People were home when the plane crashed into the building, Keene Fire Department Chief Donald Farquhar said, but no one in the building was hurt.

The fire spread quickly from the crash, and it took firefighters almost two hours to bring the fire under control.

Monville said the Keene fire department's ladder truck was "instrumental" in helping to recover wreckage from the site.

"There was an extensive post-crash fire," said Monville. "The cockpit and both wings were nearly consumed."

It's possible smaller pieces of wreckage may remain commingled in the debris. If so, they will be recovered during the demolition process, Monville said.

The wreckage will be secured at a nearby facility where investigators will attempt to reconstruct the airplane and look at the engine systems, Monville said.

Investigators also plan to look at the maintenance records of the airplane, and interviews are scheduled for Monday with maintenance personnel.

Investigators are also awaiting the autopsy and toxicology results on the victims, Monville said.

"We require autopsies and toxicology on both, and that's routine in any accident," said Monville. "It's not that we suspect anything. We don't, It's just routine."

The plane was owned by Monadnock Aviation, said Keene Mayor George Hansel.

Monadnock Aviation offers charter flights, and training for people who want to get recreational pilot's licenses.

A spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration expected the plane's identification number would be made public Monday.

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