Five People On Board, Structural Failure Possible

ANN Realtime Update 12.20.2011 1710

At a news conference, NTSB lead investigator Robert Gretz said the pilot of the downed TBM 700 discussed icing conditions with an air traffic controller. The website nj.com reports that Gretz did not offer any specifics as to how the icing conditions may have affected the aircraft, and did not speculate as to the cause of the accident.

The exchange "was described to me as not a distress call, but as more of a conversation," Gretz said.

He confirmed that pieces of the aircraft were found in trees in a residential area, but said there are conflicting reports as to whether the aircraft broke up in flight or was largely intact when it impacted the ground in the median of the Interstate highway.

ANN RealTime Update 12.20.2011 1520

The Washington Post is reporting that the five people on board the aircraft were two managing directors of the investment banking firm Greenhill & Co, along with three family members. Those on board the airplane are thought to be Jeffery Buckalew, his wife and two children, as well as Rakesh Chawla. Buckalew was the registered owner of the airplane. FAA records indicate he held a Private Pilot certificate with Single Engine Airplane and Instrument ratings. A second class medical was issued for Buckalew in July of 2011. The five were enroute to Georgia when the accident occurred.

Original Report:

A TBM 700 has gone down in the median on an Interstate highway in New Jersey, and as many as five people are thought to have been on board.

File Image

Witnesses report seeing the airplane 'spiraling out of control' before impacting the ground in the median of I-287 outside Harding, NJ. MSNBC-TV reports the aircraft was a TBM700 (similar aircraft pictured) which had departed from Teterboro airport. It was registered to Cool Stream LLC of Manhattan.

The New York Daily News reports that one wing of the airplane has been found in a tree about a quarter mile from the site of the impact, supporting the possibility of an in-flight structural failure. Wreckage is reportedly scattered over about a half-mile area.

One witness reported that they had seen the airplane in unusual attitudes prior to the wing separation. Chris Covello told the paper that the plane went straight down after the wing separated.

It was not known how many people were on board, though authorities say it may be as many as five. There were no survivors. No one on the busy highway was injured as a result of the accident, but the Interstate was closed in both directions.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov, www.faa.gov, www.njsp.org