"Five bodies were recovered from the wreckage of a small plane Sunday, a day after the aircraft disappeared from radar and the crash was found in an orchard in central California, local and federal authorities said."
I'd say they should have taken a helicopter instead, but.... at least California is flying high again.
"Small plane crashes into Alaska building, killing at least 1" Associated Press December 30, 2015
ANCHORAGE — A small plane clipped a downtown Anchorage office building and then slammed into a nearby commercial building early Tuesday, igniting a fire and killing at least one person aboard, authorities said.
The plane belonged to the Civil Air Patrol, a civilian auxiliary of the Air Force that is made up of volunteers who help in search and rescue missions, federal authorities said.
But there were no sanctioned flights when the plane crashed at 6:18 a.m., said Clint Johnson, Alaska region chief for the National Transportation Safety Board.
No one was injured on the ground, but it’s unclear whether anyone else was on the plane, Anchorage Assistant Fire Chief Alex Boyd said.
The crash happened in the heart of downtown, in an area surrounded by offices, hotels, and restaurants, before most businesses opened for the day.
Authorities later announced the FBI was joining the investigation.
Kent Haina, a 747 captain for UPS, said he was taking out his garbage when he saw the plane go down at a shallow angle and disappear behind a building. He then heard a loud thud and saw a plume of black smoke.
Haina said the wind was howling at the time. ‘‘[The engine] didn’t sound like it was in trouble, but the weather was pretty windy,’’ he said.
--more--"
