Less than two months after the crash of a plane that claimed the lives of four people in Seine-et-Marne, a new accident is mourning tourist aviation this Saturday.
At least two people were killed, just before noon, in the crash of an aircraft in Wambrechies (Nord), near Lille, probably following an engine failure, we learned from the firefighters and of the Lille prosecutor's office.
"We are trying to determine the number of victims, which could amount to three," said Lille prosecutor Carole Étienne.
The plane, apparently a 4-seater Robin H-100 according to the prosecutor, had taken off shortly before noon from Bondues aerodrome, in the Lille metropolis, with three people on board, according to firefighters.
According to information from the Voix du Nord, the accident killed three people.
It would be a couple and a child who is not theirs, all from Béziers (Hérault).
They were heading for Antwerp (Belgium), explains the daily, citing the mayor of the commune of Bondues.
WAMBRECHIES: the firefighters have been mobilized since 11:45 am following the fall of a private plane - OPERATION IN PROGRESS @ prefet59 (https://t.co/HWdAhcJXy1)
- SDIS 59 (@ Sdis59) June 12, 2021
The aircraft crashed on the territory of the municipality of Wambrechies, adjacent to Bondues, near a parking lot behind a restaurant in an activity zone.
The plane immediately caught fire.
Once the fire had been brought under control by the fire brigade, the carcass was completely destroyed.
According to the mayor of Wambrechies Stéphane Brogniart, quoted by Actu.fr, "we escaped an even greater disaster, the plane did not crash in a residential area, and avoided nearby warehouses".
The Lille public prosecutor's office was responsible for the investigation, jointly entrusted to the Air Transport Research Section (SRTA), the Civil Aviation Investigation and Analysis Bureau (BEA) and the North DDSP.
Forensic investigations are underway.
"At this stage, we assume an engine failure," said prosecutor Étienne.
To read also "At the time I did not believe it": in the Oise, the pilot in difficulty lands in urgency on the road of the village
What the testimonies seem to confirm.
According to several residents of the aerodrome, the plane's engine made an unusual noise.
“Like a big rumble that we are not used to hearing.
A growl that was heard far beyond the business area.
“I was at Robersart Park, not far away.
I saw the plane fall.
I thought he was flying way too low.
He was obviously having trouble climbing into the sky.
I was scared because my daughter does not live very far away, ”says Fabrice, interviewed by the regional daily.
