Carlsbad
A corporate jet caught fire Monday after falling 50 feet at takeoff and skidding off a runway at Palomar Airport, an airport official said. The two pilots in the plane escaped with minor injuries.
“The aircraft was 50 feet in the air when it veered to the right, then to the left, and then to the right again,” said tower manager Duane Rakotz. “It tilted, and the wing hooked in the dirt, and the aircraft slid for about 2,000 feet.”
Rakotz said a fire erupted from one of the Lear-35 jet’s engines. Carlsbad firefighters put the flames out. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating.
An airport employee, Jackie Warner, said there were “lots of flames and smoke. We didn’t expect the pilots to just walk away.”
The pilots are employees of Flight International, a company that contracts with the Navy to perform training missions. The names of the pilots will be disclosed today, officials said.
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