A cargo plane that took off from Manchester-Boston Regional Airport crashed about 20 minutes after departure on Friday morning, descending into a residential area in Londonderry.
Wiggins Air Flight 1046, bound for Presque Isle International Airport in Maine, crashed with only the pilot on board, as reported by the Federal Aviation Administration. The pilot survived the crash and made a distress call from the damaged cockpit, according to Londonderry Fire Chief Bo Butler. The pilot, conscious during the rescue, was initially taken to a nearby hospital before being transferred to a Boston medical facility.
The crash occurred approximately 70 feet from a single-family home on Colonial Drive, about five miles from the departure runway. Hazmat crews were on the scene to contain 250 gallons of spilled jet fuel.
Flight tracking site FlightAware indicated a departure delay of about 50 minutes on Friday morning. The Beechcraft 99 twin turbo-prop had made the same flight three consecutive days earlier in the week.
The Federal Aviation Administration stated that the National Transportation Safety Board would lead the investigation into the crash.
