Florida: Jet plane crashes on highway, killing two

The flight departed Ohio State University Airport in Columbus.

A private passenger jet carrying five passengers crashed on a major Florida highway on Friday, colliding with two automobiles on the ground in a fiery accident that killed two people, authorities said.

According to a statement from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the Bombardier Challenger 600 business jet, which took off from Ohio, was approaching Naples Airport when the pilot radioed that both of the plane's turbofan engines had failed.

The aircraft was engulfed in flames and smoke after crashing on Interstate 75 in Naples, on southwestern Florida's Gulf Coast, and colliding with a roadside retaining wall.

The Florida roadway Patrol reported the jet also collided with an automobile and a pickup truck on the roadway.

According to the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration, the jet was carrying five persons.

According to a Miami-based news station, the pilot was heard on an air traffic control audio tape notifying the Naples control tower that the plane had lost two engines and would fail to land at the airport.

According to the news agency, the plane was operated by the Hop-a-Jet charter aviation carrier and was eventually bound for an executive airport in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where the company is based.