A Cessna 550 private jet crashed into San Diego’s Murphy Canyon neighborhood early Thursday morning, killing all six people aboard and injuring eight residents on the ground. The fiery crash occurred just before 4 a.m. as the aircraft approached Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport amid dense fog conditions. First responders arrived to find multiple homes engulfed in flames with jet fuel flowing down the street. According to The Daily Gazette, this created what San Diego Fire-Rescue Assistant Chief Dan Eddy described as a “worst case scenario.”
The impact destroyed one home completely and damaged at least nine others in the military housing community. It forced nearly 100 residents to evacuate as authorities established a temporary shelter near Miller Elementary School. Debris was scattered across a wide area, with fragments found where the plane initially struck power lines two miles southeast of the airport before clipping a house in Tierrasanta and ultimately crashing in Murphy Canyon.
The private jet originated from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, made a brief stopover in Wichita, Kansas, and was on final approach to Montgomery-Gibbs when the disaster occurred.
Victims Of The San Diego Plane Crash
Among those confirmed dead is Dave Shapiro, a 42-year-old veteran music agent, pilot, and co-founder of Sound Talent Group, which represents numerous musical acts, including Jefferson Starship and Hanson. Daniel Williams, former drummer of the metal-core band The Devil Wears Prada, was also killed in the crash. Shortly before the disaster, Williams had posted a photo of himself in the copilot’s seat with the caption, “Hey … look at me … I’m the (co) pilot now.”
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have launched a comprehensive investigation into the crash. According to recordings from LiveATC.net, the pilot announced the plane was three miles away from landing on runway 28 shortly after 3:40 a.m., with no distress call or indication of problems with the aircraft before the crash was reported at 3:47 a.m.
The San Diego crash created what Assistant Fire Chief Eddy called a “gigantic debris field,” with images from the scene showing catastrophic damage. At least a dozen vehicles were “completely mangled” and left unrecognizable in the aftermath. While no residents lost their lives, one person was hospitalized after evacuating their home. Two others received treatment for minor injuries at the scene.
