Two people died when their plane crashed into a central Florida neighborhood Monday night, according to Brevard County Sheriff's Office Spokeswoman Maria Fernez.
The plane crashed into a back yard in Merritt Island around 8:30 p.m. Monday, in between two houses. No one on the ground was injured. Both people on board the plane were dead at the scene.
The first call came in around 8:30 p.m. The Federal Aviation Administration was notified. The crash occurred about three miles from the Merritt Island airport. Officials have not released the names of the victims.
Resident Colton Primeaux said he saw a small, white plane after it crashed into a fence in his Merritt Island neighborhood. He also said he saw an occupant of the airplane after the crash. "All I could see was the guy, he was laying out his head like sideways," said Primeaux. "It didn't look good at all. He was hurt bad."
Resident Al Kee said he was out front working on his lawn when the plane came down. "It was a real loud explosion type crash,'' he said in describing what he heard.
Investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are on the scene.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board accident investigation database, Monday's crash would be the XL-2's second fatal accident since 2008. In that incident, in Australia, the pilot was killed when the plane crashed into a field. A detailed analysis of the cause was not listed. A total of eight accidents involving the XL-2 are listed by the NTSB. Most, including one in Melbourne in 2007, took place during the approach and landing phase
The Liberty XL-2 is designed and built by Liberty Aerospace at Melbourne International Airport. The company in 2012 announced a deal with the Chinese city of Wuhan to sell 200 fixed-wing XL-2s and 200 helicopters.
