Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, August 22, 1995 TAG: 9508220053
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CARROLLTON, GA. LENGTH: Medium
``I thought I was going to die and I was just hoping it was going to end real quick,'' a passenger, Chuck Pfisterer, told Atlanta television station WSB.
``And the next thing I knew, after sustaining bumps and bruises, I opened my eyes and saw that, hey, I'm alive, and the plane is in pieces and I'm hanging by my seat belt.''
The Atlantic Southeast Airlines turboprop went down around midday about five miles from Carrollton, breaking into three large pieces as it plowed across the green field.
The pilot, Ed Gannaway, 45, of Dublin, Ga., had radioed that he was having engine problems and may have been trying to land at West Georgia Regional Airport, six to eight miles from the crash site, said Christy Williams, a Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman.
But a passenger, Air Force Maj. Chuck LeMay, said that after passengers heard a ``loud bang,'' and were told the plane would try to return to Atlanta for an emergency landing.
Polona Jeter, who lives nearby, said she saw the front of the plane ``rolling and tumbling and on fire'' as the aircraft came apart.
``I could see about 10 people getting out,'' she said. ``Some were burning. They were running. People were trying to get them down and get it out.''
The pilot and a passenger were dead at the scene, the FAA said. Another passenger died at Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga, Tenn., hospital spokeswoman Carolyn Peak told WTVC-TV.
The 26 survivors were all hospitalized. At least 10 were in critical condition with burns.
The plane left a scarred path in the field indicating it barely cleared trees before hitting the ground.
``We were all lucky to get out of that,'' LeMay said. ``There were some people who came out of the aircraft that were sitting behind where I was at. As they came out, they were on fire. People were telling them to roll, you know, on the ground.''
The two-engine Brazilian-made Embraer 120 was about 15 minutes and 50 miles into a flight from Atlanta to Gulfport, Miss. The weather was cloudy and rainy.
The cause of the crash was under investigation.
``At this point, we don't know anything about a possible cause of the accident,'' said Atlanta Southeast Airlines president John Beiser.
The Atlanta-based company passed an extensive FAA inspection in May, he said. ``We run a safe airline and will continue to do so.''
It was the third fatal commuter plane crash in 10 months. Another Atlantic Southeast Embraer 120 crashed in 1991, killing former Sen. John Tower and 22 others in Brunswick.
Officials at Atlanta-based Atlantic Southeast could not immediately be reached for comment; calls to their office were met with a busy signal.
Paul Butler, who lives about 75 yards from the crash site, said he rushed out of his house when he heard two loud booms and saw the plane skidding to a stop.
``People were already out, some on fire, going in every direction,'' Butler said.
Keywords:
FATALITY
by CNB