11 die as police plane crashes in Chile

A small police plane crashed onto a sports field in Chile’s capital Wednesday, killing all six people aboard and five on the ground, authorities reported.

The Cessna 210 was approaching the small Tobalaba airport when it went down in the Penalolen district, where residents were taking part in an exercise class sponsored by the city, Chile’s air force and local officials said.

Five people on the ground were also injured.

“The airplane appeared to lose power, made a sudden U-turn and fell,” witness Ernesto Munoz told state television. “There was violent fire when it crashed.”

The cause of the accident was under investigation.

Police said some of the bodies were found under the charred fuselage.

Two police officers and four aviation mechanics students aboard the plane died.

The small sports field is sandwiched between two larger soccer fields, where the pilot apparently had sought to land, state television reported.

“The pilot did not have enough time for an emergency landing but still had time to take the plane away from a residential area” nearby, avoiding slamming into surrounding houses, Police Gen. Gorge Rosa said.