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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Matthew Dresch

Miracle as private jet bursts into flames during take off and all 21 passengers escape

A private jet carrying 21 people burst into flames during take-off in the US.

The McDonnell Douglas MD-87 was departing Houston Executive Airport when the accident took place at just after 10am (local time).

The aircraft reportedly travelled around 500ft down the runway before it failed to get off the ground and smashed through a fence.

The plane shot across a road and came to a stop among thick brush outside the airport perimeter.

All of the passengers managed to escape and two people were rushed to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

The people on board the plane 'self-extricated', according to officials.

All of the passengers on board managed to escape the plane (NBC/UNPIXS (EUROPE))

The passengers were heading to Boston to see the Houston Astros play the Red Sox in Game 4 of Major League Baseball's American League Championship Series, Guidry said.

Huge plumes of smoke can be seen rising from the crash site for miles around.

The youngest passenger on the aircraft was just 10-years-old.

The plane is registered to J. Alan Kent, who owns Flair Builders, a Houston-based custom homebuilder, ABC 13 Eyewitness News in Houston reported.

The youngest passenger on the plane was just 10-years-old (NBC/UNPIXS (EUROPE))

Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman Sgt Stephen Woodard said: "This is a good day. This is actually a day of celebration for a lot of people."

Waller County Judge Trey Duhon wrote on Facebook : "The information we have at this time indicates that the plane did not attain altitude at the end of the runway and went across Morton Road, coming to a rest in the field just north of the airport, where it caught on fire."

The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the cause of the crash, the FAA said.

It comes after Teesside Airport was shut temporarily following an 'incident' involving a plane which led to three passengers being rushed to hospital.

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A pilot and two passengers who were onboard a light aircraft have been taken to hospital after it is believed to have struck issues during takeoff.

A witness said they heard an engine splutter then saw a plane banking sharply mid-air before it dropped to the ground with a 'thud'.

One of the trio had to be airlifted to hospital from the airport with serious injuries, as the airfield was shut 'indefinitely'.

The emergency sparked flight delays after the incident in September, with other services diverted to land in Newcastle.

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