(NewsNation) — A new report from federal investigators sheds some light on what happened before a plane crashed at a Dallas air show last month and says there was no altitude coordination.
An official cause of the accident has not yet been given.
A Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and a Bell P-63 Kingcobra crashed to the ground in a ball of flames at the Air Force Wings Over Dallas Memorial show at Dallas Executive Airport in November.
Six people died.
According to audio from the Wings over Dallas show, the air chief was directing the planes into the performance area and told the formation of fighters to fly 500 feet from where the audience was at Dallas Executive Airport. The bomber formation was ordered to fly within 1,000 feet of the audience viewing area.
“No altitude conflicts were reported prior to the flight or while the aircraft were airborne,” the report said. “As the fighter formation approached the airshow area, the P-63F was on the left bank and collided with the left side of the B-17G, just aft of the wing section.”
NTSB spokesman Eric Weiss said the agency is now trying to determine the sequence of maneuvers that led to the crash, as well as whether such air shows typically have altitude conflict mitigation plans.
Show organizers said in a statement that they continue to work with the National Transportation Safety Board. However, that agency’s investigation could take up to a year and a half.
The Memorial Air Force previously identified the victims as: Terry Barker, Craig Hutain, Kevin “K5” Michels, Dan Ragan, Leonard “Len” Root and Curt Rowe. Hank Coates, executive director of the Commemorative Air Force, said the six men were volunteers who had gone through a strict process of logging hours and training flights. They were carefully examined, he said.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
