Maverick Aviation: Crash A Unique Occurrence

SIOUX FALLS, SD - Businesses surrounding the airfield watched as the plane crashed down.

It happened just outside the window of Maverick Aviation, where management doesn't remember the last time something like this happened.

Maverick Air Center has been open just a few months. It's lobby windows face the air field, and people there watched as the Cessna crashed down. A company executive expects more work to begin now as emergency responders make way for investigators from the FAA.

“I got about 20 years on this airport and this is the first time anything like this has happened that I'm aware of,” Goodwin said.

And it all happened near the gates at the Maverick Air Center. The facility sits on the north end of the airfield where the small plane crashed just off the runway. Bruce Goodwin says even though this type of incident hasn't happened here in years, everyone responded as expected.

“Crash was doing their job. They responded to these incidents and they did,” Bruce Goodwin with the Maverick Air Center said.

Authorities were still on the scene Friday evening.

“I was not here at the time. I arrived shortly afterwards and I simply will not speculate on what happened. I know what our line technicians saw. Based on their report, but I would not want to reveal that until after whatever investigation follows,” Goodwin said.

And Goodwin expects that to happen soon. The company has already filled out reports for the Federal Aviation Administration. Goodwin expects that investigation to focus on those reports and from first-hand accounts of witnesses around the area.

“Aviation is a great industry. But unfortunately things like this happen on rare occasions,” Goodwin said.

There airport has not released any information about exactly when the investigation will be complete.