Plane Carrying FedEx Cargo Crashes, Catches Fire

A plane carrying FedEx cargo crashed during landing Tuesday at Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport.

Airport director James Loomis said both crew members were taken to a hospital, but FedEx spokeswoman Sandra Munoz said both were able to walk away from the crash.

The plane was operated by Coeur d'Alene, Idaho-based Empire Airways under contract with Memphis, Tenn.-based FedEx Corp.

The crash happened just after 4:30 a.m. Tuesday as the ATR-42 twin-turboprop aircraft was arriving from Fort Worth Alliance Arport in a freezing mist.

Officials said the plane came down at the end of the runway, veered off and caught fire. Loomis said the fire was quickly extinguished. He said weather wasn't a factor in the crash, but Munoz says the plane had skidded off the runway.

A supervisor at University Medical Center in Lubbock said the two crew members were being evaluated.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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