A private jet carrying six people crashed while taking off from a Maine airport Sunday evening as heavy snowfall battered the region, killing all aboard, according to authorities.
The Bombardier Challenger 600 went down just after taking off from Bangor International Airport around 7:45 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement to The Post.
Emergency crews responded to the crash. The airport was closed as first responders assessed the wreck.
“An incident at the airport is under investigation. First responders are on the scene assessing the situation. Please avoid the airport,” Bangor International Airport posted to social media.
The jet that crashed is registered to a Houston-based law firm, according to federal records. The law firm did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
Maine was experiencing punishing snowfall and below-freezing temperatures as Winter Storm Fern pounded much of the Northeast on Sunday.
Moments before the crash, pilots and air traffic controllers could be heard discussing low visibility and aircraft de-icing, according to audio obtained by CNN.
A controller then cleared the pilot for takeoff on Runway 33 at Bangor International Airport, the audio revealed.
Just two minutes later, a controller exclaimed, “All traffic is stopped on the field! All traffic is stopped on the field!”
Then another controller chillingly said, “Aircraft upside down. We have a passenger aircraft upside down.”
