Two children are dead and two adults remain in critical condition after a small plane crashed and caught fire on a bluff above the San Joaquin River in northwest Fresno on Saturday afternoon, near the historic Sierra Sky Park airpark. The aircraft went down around 1:50 p.m. close to West Spruce Avenue and North Blythe Avenue, triggering a massive emergency response and a fire that firefighters managed to keep from spreading into the surrounding neighborhood.
Fresno Fire Deputy Fire Marshal Jay Tracy said emergency crews found the aircraft in a river embankment roughly 200 yards past the end of the airfield runway, a location that forced responders to call in specialized water rescue and Urban Search and Rescue teams, according to GV Wire. Fire crews from the North Central Fire Department led scene management alongside Fresno Fire, Fresno Police and the Fresno County Sheriff's Office, and the response ultimately drew roughly 20 law enforcement vehicles and 10 fire engines, per the same outlet. The crash also knocked out power to about 1,700 nearby homes before Pacific Gas & Electric crews were able to restore service.
Neighbor video showed the plane taking off just after 1:40 p.m., according to FOX26. Fresno Fire Captain Josh Sellers said first responders located two people who were transported to the hospital in critical condition, while two other individuals found inside the plane were pronounced deceased at the scene. The Fresno County Sheriff's Office later identified the deceased as children, and the two critically injured adults were taken to Community Regional Medical Center, FOX26 reported.
Fire Contained on a River Bluff Above Homes
The crash site sat directly atop a bluff overlooking the San Joaquin River, immediately adjacent to residential properties in the 7300 block of North Blythe Avenue, according to Sierra Sun Times. Firefighters were able to contain the resulting blaze before it could spread into the nearby suburban neighborhood, the outlet reported. A local resident, Todd Armas, described hearing a big thump and seeing dark smoke rise after the crash, per FOX26.
Fresno City Council Member Mike Karbassi acknowledged the tragedy on social media, saying his immediate concern was for the survivors. He said he planned to help ensure the survivors have what they need as they recover, according to FOX26's reporting.
Federal Investigators Take Over the Scene
The Fresno County Sheriff's Office established a multi-day security perimeter around the bluff crash site to preserve physical evidence for investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration, Sierra Sun Times reported. Those federal agencies typically lead investigations into major general aviation fatalities, and their inquiry is expected to determine what caused the aircraft to go down so soon after takeoff. Initial reports described the aircraft as a single-engine passenger plane, and the Daily Sun identified it as a Grumman American Aviation Corp. AA-5.
A Repeat Tragedy at the World's First Airpark
This is not the first fatal crash near Sierra Sky Park. A small plane crashed near the airpark in 2016, killing William Huene and Chase Splan, according to FOX26. The Fresno County Sheriff's Office said Huene, 47, was the pilot, while Splan was 32 at the time of the crash. That 2016 accident involved an amateur-built Express S-90 experimental aircraft that departed controlled flight shortly after takeoff from Runway 30 and went down near the same river bluff area, according to Kathryn's Report.
The airfield has seen other close calls, too. On May 2, 2020, a Cessna 172N suffered engine trouble, overran the runway, and crashed through a perimeter fence into traffic on Herndon Avenue, though that incident did not cause major injuries, according to a Reddit account documenting the airpark's history.
Sierra Sky Park was established in 1946 on 130 acres by William and Doris Smilie as the world's first residential aviation community, an airpark designed with wide streets and low-profile signage so residents could taxi private planes directly from home hangars to the runway, according to Wikipedia. The airfield was built miles outside Fresno amid fig orchards and cotton fields, but decades of suburban expansion have completely surrounded the 110-home community with dense residential neighborhoods, schools and commercial development, according to the same source. FOX26 said it will update its story as more information becomes available.
