
CRASH SCENE – Officials say a plane clipped some trees while coming in for a landing Friday. Messenger photo by Mack Thweatt
Two occupants of a single-engine plane were taken to hospitals following a crash near the Bridgeport Airport Friday afternoon.
The crash was reported around 3:30 p.m. between Bridgeport and Runaway Bay just south of U.S. 380.
First responders arrived on the scene to find the Beechcraft Bonanza plane belly-down in the backyard of a home on the south side of U.S. 380, just north of the runway at the airport.
“Preliminary investigation indicates a Beechcraft aircraft was approaching the airport to land when the aircraft clipped some trees and went down short of the runway,” said Sgt. Ricky Hunter, spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Witnesses at the scene reported to dispatchers that the plane was briefly on fire before it was extinguished.
Two men, ages 78 and 76, were the plane’s occupants and sustained undisclosed injuries. Their identities and conditions have not been released by investigators.
Air Evac Lifeteam 68 responded to the scene and landed in a grassy area near the crash site.
One occupant was flown to a Metroplex hospital while one was taken to a Denton hospital by ground ambulance, according to law enforcement on the scene.

SECONDARY CRASH – A person driving east on U.S. 380 witnessed the plane go down and crashed while trying to quickly pull off the road. Messenger photo by Mack Thweatt
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will investigate.
A pickup that was eastbound on U.S. 380 also crashed after apparently seeing the plane go down. The driver appeared to try to pull off the road, but the truck crashed into a culvert, leaving the back end of the pickup sticking up in the air. One person from that vehicle was taken by ground ambulance to Wise Health System in Decatur, according to law enforcement.
The Wise County Sheriff’s Office, Wise County EMS, Runaway Bay Fire Department, Texas Department of Public Safety, Bridgeport Police Department, Runaway Bay Police Department and Texas Parks and Wildlife Game Warden all responded to the crash to assist at the scene.


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