NTSB says plane was built in 1977 and was in air 8-10 minutes

BOCA RATON — The Cessna 310 plane that crashed and killed all three on board Friday morning in Boca Raton was a six-seater built in 1977 that was in the air for about 8-10 minutes before it hit the ground off Military Trail near Glades Road, a spokesperson for the National Transportation Safety Board said in a briefing.

Spokesperson Kurt Gibson confirmed the aircraft departed from Boca Raton Airport at about 10:15 a.m. bound for Tallahassee and that problems began soon after takeoff.

Gibson did not offer any clues as to why the plane went down other than to say, “our mission is to figure out what happens, why it happens and what we can do to prevent it from happening again.”

He said the wreckage of the aircraft, which he said had a registration number N8930N, will be examined on the ground before being taken to a secure facility in Jacksonville for further analysis.

The twin-engine plane is registered to Reprop LLC 310 Series, a corporation in Wilmington, Delaware, Federal Aviation Administration records show.

Gibson said the standard procedure for the investigation will be a preliminary report in 30 days, followed by a 12-24 month report that will offer a final analysis and a probable cause for the crash.

He said although the plane was built nearly 50 years ago, there are “thousands of other planes that are older” and that all planes are fully inspected and certified before flying.

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The plane does not have a recording “black box,” but Gibson said there are other parameters that will be able to help with the investigation. He added that multiple factors will go into the investigation, including pilot qualifications, a 72-hour history for the pilot, maintenance records, wreckage details and environmental factors.

He said anyone who has audio or video information should contact authorities at witness@ntsb.gov.

Jasmine Fernández is a journalist covering Delray Beach and Boca Raton for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at jfernandez@pbpost.com and follow her on X (formerly Twitter) at @jasminefernandz. Help support our work. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Boca Raton plane crash: NTSB provides update on crash that killed three