Six Die In Small Plane Crash

A small plane crashed into a rugged hillside and burst into flames on Thursday, killing all six people on board, authorities said.

Only the tail of the twin-engine Cessna 421 was intact after the crash. The wreckage burned for nearly two hours in a heavily wooded ravine about three miles north of Cleveland, 35 miles west of Tulsa.

All six people on board were killed, said Sgt. Patrick Sawyer of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.

Steve Culbertson, who was driving by on Oklahoma Highway 99, said he saw the plane go into a flat spin before hitting the hillside, when it went up in flames.

The plane was registered in Texas, said Louis McClain of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. It left Tulsa shortly after 2 p.m. and crashed about 45 minutes later, shortly after leaving Tulsa’s radar range.

Investigators said the flight originated in Tuscaloosa, Ala., and was bound for Aspen, Colo.

The cause of the crash was under investigation. At the time the plane went down, skies were overcast with light snow.