Young medical patient and mother among those killed in Philadelphia plane crash
A medical plane carrying a young patient and her mother has crashed in a heavily populated area of Philadelphia – killing all six people on board.
The Jet Rescue Air Ambulance was carrying the girl and her mother from Northeast Philadelphia Airport to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri – on their way home to Tijuana, Mexico, the company said.
It crashed about 30 seconds after taking off, erupting in a fireball and engulfing several homes in flames.
First responders at the scene. Pic: AP Photo/Matt Rourke
The plane came down near the Roosevelt Mall in the Rhawnhurst area of Pennsylvania at 6.30pm local time on Friday (11.30pm UK time). Four members of crew were also on board, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed.
The aircraft had climbed to 1,600ft (487m) and travelled around three miles (5km) from the airport – before it came down.
Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, which is based in Mexico, said: “At this time we cannot confirm any survivors.”
Shai Gold, who works in corporate strategy for the company, said it was “terribly shocked by this tragic turn of events”.
“This was a very seasoned crew,” she said. “We are a leading air ambulance company, we fly 600 to 700 times a year. We don’t really know what happened.”
Debris believed to be from the small plane on the ground in Philadelphia. Pic: @Kikatechusa via AP
Fire engines and other emergency vehicles were sent to the scene, with the blaze appearing to have been put out around two hours after the crash.
There were reports of people injured on the ground – but no details were confirmed.
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Smoke rises as emergency services work at the scene of the crash. Pic: Reuters
A doorbell camera captured the plane falling from the sky in a streak of white and exploding as it hit the ground.
The owner of the camera, Jim Quinn, said: “All we heard was a loud roar and didn’t know where it was coming from. We just turned around and saw the big plume.”
The moment of the crash was also seen on dashcam footage of a car driving nearby.
Michael Schiavone, 37, was at home in a nearby neighbourhood when he heard a loud bang and his house shook. He described it as a “mini earthquake” and when he checked his home security camera, it looked like a missile came down.
Philadelphia Governor Josh Shapiro said: “We want to offer our thoughts and serious prayers for those that are grieving at this moment.”
President Donald Trump wrote on social media that he was “so sad” to see the crash.
“More innocent souls are lost. Our people are totally engaged. First responders are already being given credit for doing a great job.”
The FAA said the National Transportation Safety Board would lead an investigation into the crash. The NTSB said an investigator has arrived at the scene – and more officials would be deployed on Saturday.
Smoke rises above houses after the crash. Pic: AP
Second US plane crash in a week
The crash comes days after a plane collided with a US Army helicopter as it came into land at an airport in Washington DC – killing all 64 people on board the plane – and three on the helicopter.
The aircraft had requested to land on the shorter runway at Reagan Washington National Airport – before it collided with the helicopter, and fell into the Potomac River at around 8.47pm local time (1.47am UK time) on Wednesday.
At a news conference on Friday, authorities said they have recovered 48 bodies so far – of which they have identified 28.
Head of Washington DC’s emergency medical services John Donnelly said he expects all the victims’ bodies to be found – but it would require the plane debris to be removed from the river.
Crews are currently working at the shoreline and more personnel were being deployed late on Friday, he said.
Vladimir Putin told Donald Trump he “will not back down” from Russia’s goals in Ukraine during a phone call today, the Kremlin has said.
The Russian president spoke to his US counterpart for almost an hour, and Mr Trump “again raised the issue of an early end to military action” in Ukraine, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters.
In response, Mr Putin said “Russia will not back down” from its aims there, which include “the elimination of the well-known root causes that led to the current state of affairs,” Mr Ushakov said.
The phrase “root causes” is shorthand for Moscow’s argument that it was compelled to invade Ukraine in order to prevent the country from joining NATO.
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Ukraine and its European allies say this is a pretext to justify what they call an imperial-style war, but Mr Trump has previously shown sympathy with Russia.
At the same time, Mr Putin told the US president that Russia is ready to continue negotiating, the aide said.
The Russian president said any prospective peace deal must see Ukraine give up its NATO bid and recognise his country’s territorial gains.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, seen with Mr Trump in June, is pushing for Ukraine to join NATO. Pic: Reuters
He also briefed Mr Trump on agreements made last month, which saw Russia and Ukraine exchange prisoners of war and dead soldiers.
Specific dates for the third round of peace talks in Istanbul were not discussed – nor was the US decision to halt some shipments of critical weapons to Ukraine.
Mr Putin and Mr Trump’s call came after the Pentagon confirmed some weapons due to be sent to Ukraine have been held as it reviews military stockpiles.
The paused shipments include air defence missiles and precision-guided artillery, two people familiar with the situation have said.
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The decision led to Ukraine calling in the acting US envoy to Kyiv on Wednesday to underline the importance of military aid from Washington.
Kyiv also cautioned that the move would weaken Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against intensifying Russian airstrikes and battlefield advances.
Mr Putin and Mr Trump’s phone call was the sixth they have publicly disclosed since the US president returned to the White House in January.
Donald Trump’s ‘big beautiful bill’ has been passed by the US congress, sending it to the president to sign into law.
The controversial tax breaks and spending cuts package cleared its final hurdle as the Republican-controlled House of Representatives narrowly approved the bill with a 218-214 vote.
The bill delivers tax breaks Mr Trump promised in his 2024 election campaign, cuts health and food safety programmes, and zeroes out dozens of green energy incentives.
According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), it will lower tax revenues by $4.5trn over 10 years and add $3.4trn to the US’s $36.2trn debt.
But despite concerns over the 869-page bill’s price tag – and its hit to healthcare programmes – Republicans largely lined up in support, with just two rebelling on the vote.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is congratulated following the vote. Pic: Reuters
Every Democrat in Congress voted against the bill, blasting it as a giveaway to the wealthy that will leave millions of Americans uninsured.
House Speaker Mike Johnson made the Republicans’ closing argument for the bill, telling Congress: “For everyday Americans, this means real, positive change that they can feel.”
Earlier, the House’s Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries gave a record-breaking eight-hour and 44-minute speech against it.
“The focus of this bill, the justification for all of the cuts that will hurt everyday Americans, is to provide massive tax breaks for billionaires,” he said.
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The bill’s spending cuts largely target Medicaid, the health programme that covers 71 million Americans on low incomes.
It will tighten enrolment standards, institute a work requirement and clamp down on a funding mechanism used by states to boost federal payments.
The changes could leave nearly 12 million people without health insurance, according to the CBO.
On the other side of the ledger, it will stave off tax increases that were due to hit most Americans at the end of the year, when tax cuts from President Trump’s first term were due to expire.
It also sets up new tax breaks for overtime pay, seniors and tipped income.
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The bill narrowly passed the US Senate on Tuesday after vice president JD Vance cast the deciding vote to break a 50-50 tie.
Mr Trump will sign it into law on Friday at 5pm local time (10pm in the UK), the White House said.
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