FOLLOW US

On Saturday, six people were killed when a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and a Bell P-63 King cobra collided in midair. The vintage World War II military planes crashed at the Dallas Executive Airport during the Wings Over Dallas airshow.

Dallas Fire-Rescue along with over 40 fire rescue units responded to the scene. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) puts the time of the crash at 1:20 p.m. Saturday.

The Dallas County Medical Examiner’s office confirmed everyone on board both planes died. And none of the estimated 4,000 spectators or anyone on the ground was harmed.

The crash debris stretched across airport grounds and littered nearby Highway 67. According to Dallas Police, both southbound and northbound lanes of the highway were closed. And traffic was temporarily diverted to the east and west of Ledbetter Drive. 

Video of the crash appeared on social media. The planes can be seen colliding and breaking apart in midair. Then they hit the ground and burst into flames.

 The footage was described as heartbreaking by Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson as “heartbreaking.” seconds, before bursting into flames.

Wings Over Dallas featured vintage planes

Hank Coates, president, and CEO of the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) which sponsored the airshow had a Saturday news conference. He said both of the vintage planes were hangered out of Conroe, Texas in a suburb of Houston.

The B-17 was part of the Commemorative Air Force, nicknamed the “Texas Raiders,” collection. Only about 45 of this model plane survive. Of those only 9 can fly.

The P-63 was one of only 4 airworthy planes of this model. And 1 of them is owned by the CAF.

According to Coates, the pilots and crew in Wings Over Dallas airshows are volunteers. The group has strict training requirements and processes. And most of the participants are airline pilots or retired military pilots.

“The maneuvers that they (the aircraft) were going through were not dynamic at all. It was what we call ‘Bombers on Parade,” Coates explained.

“This is not about the aircraft. It’s just not,” Coates claimed. “I can tell you the aircraft are great aircraft, they’re safe. They’re very well-maintained. The pilots are very well-trained. So, it’s difficult for me to talk about it, because I know all these people, these are family, and they’re good friends.”

FAA and NTSB investigate

The Allied Pilots Association which represents American Airlines pilots identified two retired pilots and former union members as among those killed.

Terry Barker and Len Root were both on the crew of the ill-fated B-17 Flying Fortress when it went down.  

“Our hearts go out to their families, friends, and colleagues past and present,” the APA tweeted. The APA is offering professional counseling services at their headquarters in Fort Worth following the incident.”

The last day of the Wings Over Dallas event was canceled.

Members of the National Transportation Safety Board’s to-go team arrived at the scene Sunday to investigate the crash.