Two small planes collided Monday, killing two firefighters at the Marion Municipal Airport in Indiana, officials told television station WTTV.
Kyle M. Hibst, 31, and David Wittkamper, 31, both from Elwood, Indiana, both died in the crash, the television station reported. Hibst and Wittkamper were in a Cessna 150 when the Federal Aviation Administration said it struck the tail of a Cessna 525 Citation jet on takeoff at the airport, about 85 miles north of Indianapolis, per WTTV.
The FAA wrote that the Citation had just landed when the collision occurred, the television station reported.
"The jet was already landed and coming to a stop, if you will, and there was not enough rise for the Cessna and it clipped the tail end of the jet," Marion Police Deputy Chief Stephan Dorsey told WANE-TV.
Marion Municipal Airport does not have an air traffic control communications and pilots are expected to announce when they are landing and taking off on a common radio frequency and coordinate the activity with other pilots, WANE-TV said. The television station said it was not clear if those announcements were made properly before this crash.
Hibst and Wittkamper were both volunteer firefighters at the Pipe Creek Fire Department in Madison County, Indiana, according to WTTV.
"Chief Richard Shepherd is saddened by the loss of these two great individuals who have given so much back to their family, community and this fire department," the Pipe Creek Fire Department said in a statement, per WTTV.
"The members of the Pipe Creek Fire Department are all at a loss as they come together to help each other thru this difficult time. Chief Shepherd is grateful for the outpouring of support from the emergency services in Madison County. Please respect the privacy of our firefighters, and the families who have lost loved ones tonight," the statement continued.
WANE-TV said there were no injuries on the Cessna Citation, which had five people onboard and was registered to Avis Industrial Corporation.
The National Transportation Safety Board has taken the lead in the remaining investigation.
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