
Investigators work the scene after a small plane crashed in Philadelphia, Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
The small plane carrying six people, including a child who had just undergone treatment at a hospital, crashed just after takeoff from the small Northeast Philadelphia Airport, creating what witnesses described as a massive fireball and a chaotic street scene that left houses on fire, businesses damaged, and cars destroyed.
PHILADELPHIA — Authorities sifted through burned cars, damaged homes and charred debris Saturday to gather clues that might explain why an air ambulance exploded into a fiery ball as it crashed on a busy Philadelphia street, killing seven and leaving no survivors on board.
The small plane carrying six people, including a child who had just undergone treatment at a hospital, crashed just after takeoff from the small Northeast Philadelphia Airport, creating what witnesses described as a massive fireball and a chaotic street scene that left houses on fire, businesses damaged, and cars destroyed.
Authorities couldn’t say why the jet crashed and Adam Thiel, the city’s managing director, said it could be days — or more — until authorities are able to fully count the number of dead and injured across a massive impact area spanning blocks in a densely populated residential area.
Seven dead and 19 injured, although the casualty toll could go higher
As of Saturday morning, officials said there were seven dead — six on the jet, one person on the ground — and 19 injured. The plane hit the ground just after 6 p.m., during a busy Friday evening dinner hour. Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said the plane was aloft for a very short period of time before it crashed.
@keystonenewsroom Several casualties were reported after a small plane crashed, causing an explosion and sparking multiple fires near a shopping mall and busy intersection in Northeast Philadelphia on Friday evening, January 31, according to local media, citing police. The crash happened near Cottman Avenue and Roosevelt Boulevard, across from the Roosevelt Mall, at around 6 pm, authorities said. This footage shows a large explosion as the plane crashed, followed by multiple fires. The FAA said a Learjet 55 crashed after leaving Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to NBC Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management (OEM) said several roads in the area would remain closed as emergency services responded. Governor Josh Shapiro said he and his team were communicating with Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, the Philadelphia Police Department, the Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management and the Philadelphia Fire Department, and that his office was “offering all Commonwealth resources as they respond to the small private plane crash in Northeast Philly.” 🎥 : @st4ced_up via Storyful #Pennsylvanian #Pennsylvania #Pennsylvania_life #NewsUpdate #NewsUpdates #Philly #PhillyNews
“All of sudden I heard like a ‘boom,’ and I thought it was a thunderstorm,” said Selkuc Koc, a waiter at the Four Seasons Diner on Cottman Avenue. “And I get up and look at the smoke and the fire, it was like a balloon, I thought it was a gas station that blew up.”
Spokespersons for hospitals treating the injured, Temple University Hospital-Jeanes and Jefferson Health, said most of the patients they saw had been treated and released by midday Saturday, but at least three were admitted and remain hospitalized.
One patron of the Four Seasons Diner was hit and injured by a small, heavy metal object that flew through the window, Koc said.
Crash scene extends for at least four city blocks
The crash scene was at least four to six blocks, and authorities were working to assess the damage, including going house to house to inspect the dwellings in the area, Thiel said.
It is “entirely possible” that there will be changes to the casualty figures, Thiel said. There are “a lot of unknowns” as to who was where on the streets of the neighborhood when the plane crashed.
Of the six people on board the medical transport jet, one was a child who had just completed treatment at Shriners Children’s hospital, one was her mother and four were crew members, officials said.
@keystonenewsroom Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker confirmed that all six passengers on board the medical plane that crashed in Northeast Philadelphia Friday evening had died, along with at least one person on the ground. Watch for more details. #Pennsylvania #Philly #PhillyPlanecrash #PhillyPhilly #Philadelphia #Philadelphiatok #Phillytok #PhillyNews #PhiladelphiaNews #northeastphiladelphia #Newsupdate #Planecrash
All victims on jet were from Mexico
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said all the victims were from Mexico. In a statement on the social media platform X, Sheinbaum said she mourned their deaths.
“Consular authorities are in constant contact with the families; I’ve asked the Foreign Affairs Secretary to support whatever is needed. My solidarity with their loved ones and friends,” she said in a statement translated from Spanish.
Of the casualties on the ground, Parker said one person who was in a car was killed and 19 others were injured.
The child on the medical transport jet had just completed treatment at Shriners Children’s Philadelphia hospital. Hospital officials said that, because of patient privacy concerns, they couldn’t say more about the patient and her family.
Tijuana was the flight’s final destination after a stop in Missouri.
Jet Rescue Air Ambulance is based in Mexico and has operations both there and in the U.S. It operated the Learjet 55, which was registered in Mexico.
Jet Rescue spokesperson Shai Gold said a seasoned crew operated the plane and all flight crews undergo rigorous training.
“When an incident like this happens, it’s shocking and surprising,” Gold said. “All of the aircraft are maintained, not a penny is spared because we know our mission is so critical.”
Crash comes on the heels of devastating DC midair collision
The crash came just two days after the deadliest U.S. air disaster in a generation. On Wednesday night, an American Airlines jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided in midair in Washington, D.C., with an Army helicopter carrying three soldiers. There were no survivors.
The Philadelphia crash was the second fatal incident in 15 months for Jet Rescue. In 2023 five crewmembers were killed when their plane overran a runway in the central Mexican state of Morelos and crashed into a hillside.
In Philadelphia, a doorbell camera captured video of the plane plunging in a streak of white and exploding as it hit the ground near a shopping mall and major roadway.
“All we heard was a loud roar and didn’t know where it was coming from. We just turned around and saw the big plume,” said Jim Quinn, the owner of the doorbell camera.
The crash happened less than 3 miles from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, which primarily serves business jets and charter flights.
Learjet disappears from radar after taking off
The Learjet 55 quickly disappeared from radar after taking off from the airport at 6:06 p.m. and climbing to an altitude of 1,600 feet. It was registered to a company operating as Med Jets, according to the flight tracking website Flight Aware.
Shortly after 6 p.m., audio recorded by LiveATC captured an air traffic controller telling “Medevac Medservice 056” to turn right when departing. About 30 seconds later it repeats the request before asking, “You on frequency?” Minutes later, the controller says, “We have a lost aircraft. We’re not exactly sure what happened, so we’re trying to figure it out. For now the field is going to be closed.”
Michael Schiavone, 37, was sitting at his home in Mayfair, a nearby neighborhood, when he heard a loud bang and his house shook.
“There was a large explosion, so I thought we were under attack for a second,” he said.
Jet Rescue, which provides global air ambulance services, flew baseball Hall of Famer David Ortiz to Boston after he was shot in the Dominican Republic in 2019 and was involved in transporting patients critically ill with COVID-19.
The FAA said the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation. The NTSB said an investigator arrived Friday and more officials would be there Saturday.

Egg-traordinary theft: $40,000 worth of eggs stolen in Franklin County
As the price of eggs continues to increase due to the largest outbreak of bird flu in a decade, 100,000 eggs valued at $40,000 were stolen in...

Struggling with your mental health after surviving a disaster? Here’s how to look after yourself
By MARIAM FAM Associated Press There's the initial shock and chaos in a collective disaster like the deadly and destructive California wildfires....

Victims identified in Philadelphia plane crash as investigation continues
Officials said an 'expansive' impact zone was left by the Philadelphia plane crash that killed all six people on the air ambulance bound for Mexico,...

5 injured in fatal Philadelphia plane crash remain hospitalized, 3 in critical condition
Mayor Cherelle Parker said 22 people were injured and five of them remain hospitalized in Friday's crash of a Mexico-bound air ambulance in which...

A medical plane carrying a child patient and 5 others crashes in Philadelphia, setting homes ablaze
The company operating the flight that crashed into a Northeast Philadelphia neighborhood Friday evening said it could not confirm any survivors....