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UPLAND, Calif. — A pilot and two passengers were killed Sunday after a single-engine plane crashed into a hangar at a Southern California airport and burst into flames, authorities said.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the single-engine Beechcraft P35 crashed as it took off at about 6:30 a.m. PDT from Cable Airport in Upland, about 37 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, KABC-TV reported.
The San Bernardino County Fire Department stated that fire crews arrived at the scene to fight flames that had engulfed the hangar, KTLA-TV reported. The fire was brought under control in about 15 minutes, the fire department wrote in a Facebook post.
“Around 6:40 a.m., San Bernardino Fire responded to reports of a structure fire at the Cable Airport,” Eric Sherwin, a spokesperson for the fire department, said in a statement. “An additional 911 caller stated that a light aircraft had crashed into one of the hangars.”
The pilot and passengers were pronounced dead at the scene, the fire department stated in the Facebook post.
The hangar is used to support the Ontario Police Department’s aviation unit, KCAL-TV reported. Several helicopters are stored at the location, according to the television station. Crews were able to prevent damage to the three helicopters stored in the hangar on Sunday, fire officials said.
None of the police vehicles or helicopters were damaged as a result of the crash, according to KTLA.
“I heard a very loud noise, sounded like a truck hit a building,” a neighbor, who did not give his name, told the television station. “My dad flies out of Apple Valley Airport and lands here all the time, and we do occasionally see people come up short and a couple crashes here. But nothing this bad, ever. This is really, really bad.”
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the cause of the crash, according to KABC.
The identities of the pilot and the passengers have not been released.
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