US plane crash kills 17

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Source: CCTV.com | 03-23-2009 13:36

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has said 17 people were killed in a plane crash in Montana on Sunday.

The single engine plane crashed as it was attempting to land, and hit Butte's Holy Cross Cemetery.

In this picture provided by Martha Guidoni via The Montana Standard, a fire burns inside the Holy Cross Cemetery after a small, singe-engine plane crashed in an area just south of the Bert Mooney Airport in Butte, Mont. on Sunday, March 22, 2009.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

Officials say the pilot had filed a flight plan showing a final destination of Bozeman, but canceled his flight plan at some point and headed for Butte.

Preliminary reports indicate the dead include numerous children. There were no known fatalities on the ground.

An eyewitness said the plane was doing steep angle turns before nosediving into the cemetery. The incident was the country's third major plane crash this year.

Editor:Zhang Pengfei