Two people onboard a small plane were killed when the aircraft crashed into two homes in a Simi Valley neighborhood Saturday afternoon in Ventura County, just north of Los Angeles. There were no reported injuries to people on the ground.
Simi Valley police said that the pilot, a passenger and a dog were on the plane when it crashed at approximately 2:10 p.m. Pacific Time in the 200 block of High Meadow Street near Wood Ranch Parkway
The Federal Aviation Administration said that the aircraft was a Vans RV-10, which had taken off from William J. Fox Airfield in Lancaster and was heading to Camarillo Airport.
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“The structures are both two-story, single-family homes that were impacted by fire and sustained structural damage,” the Ventura County Fire Department said on X. “The fire has been knocked down and firefighters are working on overhaul and salvage operations.”
None of the victims have yet been identified.
“Residents were inside both homes at the time of the incident, and were evacuated with no reported injuries,” firefighters said.
Police closed the area between Wood Ranch Parkway and High Meadow Street as the investigation continued. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
One of the homes was red-tagged by building inspectors, while the other was yellow-tagged. Neither family stayed in their homes overnight due to the extensive damage, which could be seen being repaired on Sunday.
“After the wreckage is documented, it will then be moved to a secure facility for further evaluation,” said a statement from the NTSB. They say that they will be investigating three factors in the crash — the pilot, the aircraft and the operating environment.
Their preliminary report is expected within 30 days, but the full report could take up to two years to be completed.
“They’ll be looking at things like the weather at the time, they’ll be looking at the pilot’s experience, how many hours did the pilot have, when did the pilot last fly,” said Max Trescott, an aviation expert. “They’ll also examine the wreckage to see if there are any clues to any failures that they can determine.”
The remnants of the plane were hauled away on Sunday morning as the federal investigation got underway.
Neighbors said that the aircraft had circled the area several times before it crashed, dipping in and out of the cloud cover lingering over the area.
“That might suggest leaning towards loss of control,” Trescott said.
Video from the scene posted to the Citizen app shows a large presence of police and firefighter personnel near several homes as neighbors look on.
Another video showed as a large plume of black smoke rose from behind several homes as neighbors rushed outside following the incident.
The FAA had initially reported in a statement that the pilot was the lone occupant of the plane. However, police later said that the plane was carrying two people and a dog.
In early January, a Vans RV-10 crashed into a warehouse in Orange County, killing two people on board and injuring more than a dozen others inside of the building. An NTSB investigation found that the pilot’s door was ajar during the flight.
