HARTFORD, Conn. _ A student pilot and instructor were arguing shortly before a small plane they were in crashed in Hartford, Conn., on Tuesday, killing one of them, a high-ranking local law enforcement official said Wednesday.
The source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the student pilot told the instructor he did not want to fly the plane any longer, although it is not clear why. Another source said the student pilot starting flying the plane erratically and the instructor fought to gain control before the crash.
An initial search of an apartment where the student pilot, Feras M. Freitekh, was staying turned up no evidence of terrorism, the source said. But the FBI continued to search the apartment until about 2 p.m. Wednesday. Freitekh, 28, was killed.
The National Transportation Safety Board said its initial investigation indicates the crash was intentional and that the FBI will lead the investigation.
East Hartford Lt. Joshua Litwin said one of the victims escaped from the plane after it crashed and is being treated at the Bridgeport hospital's burn center. He is expected to survive and is talking with investigators, Litwin said.
The instructor was identified by sources as Arian Prevalla. He is the president of the American Flight Academy and managing member of the Hartford Jet Center, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Authorities said they were trying to determine who had control of the plane at the time of the crash.
"Either of the two occupants at any time had the ability to take control of this plane," said Litwin.
The wreckage of the plane remained on the scene of the crash Wednesday morning, and a stretch of Main Street was closed.
The Piper PA-34 Seneca struck a utility pole and wires, knocking out power to the area, and was then engulfed in flames, witnesses said. The twin-engine aircraft, which took off with a student and flight instructor at Hartford-Brainard Airport, crashed about 3:40 p.m. Tuesday.
Public record show Freitekh had lived in Orland Hills, Ill., since April of 2013. He holds a license to fly a single-engine plane. Federal Aviation Administration records show he was issued a private pilot certificate on May 29, 2015.
Police also were at an apartment house on Annawan Street in Hartford late Tuesday and Wednesday, searching with dogs and wearing protective gear, the boyfriend of a resident of the three-building complex said. Sources said Freitekh was staying at the location and that investigators interviewed other flight students.
Eric Bass, who lives nearby, said a number of apartments in the complex are rented out by area flight schools for their students. He said the students who lived there are from foreign countries, although he did not know where. He said four students lived in the building where his girlfriend lives. Bass did not say whether police took anything out of the apartment. The complex was not evacuated.
Freitekh was staying at the apartment for at least five months, neighbors said.
Giselle Velazquez, one of his neighbors, said Freitekh was "very nice, polite, always smiling" and that he "always stopped to say hello."
Another neighbor, Jessica Reyes, who lived in the same building, said he often cooked meals from his native Jordan for her and that he bought ice cream for neighborhood children.
A man from Amman who identified himself as a cousin of Freitekh, contacted through Facebook, said Freitekh's dream was to become a pilot, and that's why he came to the United States.
"He was a good person, kind and helpful," said the cousin, who did not want to be identified by name. "He wasn't religious at all. He was open-minded."
Flight students also stay in an apartment on nearby Essex Street, which city records indicate is owned by Prevalla. A neighbor at 32 Essex St. said the owner of unit E frequently rents to trainees at Brainard Airport, typically young men who stay for months at a time. The unit has so much turnover, she said, that an "unoccupied" label remains marked on the front door for that unit.
Two men had recently been living there, she said, though she didn't have their names. The head of the condominium association was not immediately available for comment.
The men live on the top floor of the Essex Street building. No one answered the door at the unit Wednesday morning.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy warned Wednesday that the general public should not jump to conclusions about the reasons for the plane crash.
"As a nation, we have all had to adjust to a new reality," Malloy told reporters at the state Capitol. "When events such as this occur, we recognize that people almost automatically wonder if someone meant to do us harm. But we must exercise caution about jumping to conclusions before discovering and considering all of the facts."
Malloy has been briefed by the state police, who are involved in the investigation along with other authorities. He declined to discuss specific details of the investigation and referred questions to the FBI.
When asked if there is a no-fly zone over the Pratt & Whitney complex in East Hartford, Malloy said, "That's a rather large site, so I hadn't considered that � next to an international airport, as well as a local airport that has limited-size airplanes available to it."
Regarding whether there is a need for increasing security across the state, Malloy said he was "not aware of any specific threats associated with this action."
A Pratt & Whitney spokesman said Wednesday that the defense contractor was "assisting authorities as needed. We are unable to comment further on an active investigation."
Pratt & Whitney workers arriving for work Wednesday said they were still shaken by the crash.
Gregory Bell saw the plane flying unusually low as he drove home from work. "I saw the plane going low," he said. "It was too low." By the time he got down the street, he heard the crash.
There were no obvious signs of stepped up security as Bell and coworkers reported to work Wednesday morning.
A minivan that stopped just short of colliding with the plane also remained on Main Street near the wreckage, its doors wide open. Two people in the minivan were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, Oates said. Police said the vehicle did not appear to have been hit by the plane.
Jonathan Rucker said he was sitting at a picnic table behind a house on Colt Street when he heard the airplane suddenly go silent.
"I hear planes every day," he said. "I heard a plane, then I didn't hear anything. I looked up and the plane was just tipping over. It tipped to the left and dropped straight down. There was a loud bang, smoke and flame. It tipped to the left and just dropped like a rock."
Matthew Zuerblis of Wethersfield was talking to some coworkers at Monro Muffler at 431 Main St. when they heard a ground-shaking blast.
"You heard an explosion, Zuerblis said. "Telephone poles shook. We thought it was a car accident at first."
He went out to the street near Frank's Willow Inn restaurant and saw that black smoke was billowing from a plane, not a car. A woman who had been in a van that stopped right next to the wrecked plane rushed away from the scene with two children.
"She was just hysterical," he said. "I'm just glad they're OK."
Frank Crandall, who saw the crash while driving, said he stomped on his brakes when he saw the low-flying plane.
"I saw the plane hit the power lines, go into a power pole and then hit just before a minivan and burst into flames," said Crandall, who works in a building next to the crash. "I thought the power lines were going to come down, so I gunned it."
He said he turned around and saw a woman from the van screaming. He went to see if he could help.
"She was fine, she came into our office," Crandall said.
Erick Zapata, who was at a nearby Subway shop while on a break from work, said "out of nowhere a plane crashed into the pole."
"Pieces started flying everywhere," he said. "I was nervous, I was shaking. It was crazy. I've never seen anything like it."
