A small plane crashed into a Nebraska river Friday night, killing all three passengers, according to authorities.
The plane crashed at about 8:15 p.m. into the Platte River south of Fremont — about 40 miles northwest of Omaha — according to a statement from the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office.
The office said the plane was traveling along the river when it went down.
The bodies of three occupants from the plane were recovered, the sheriff’s office said. It identified the victims as Daniel Williams, 43, of Moundridge, Kansas; Jeff Bittinger, 50, of Fremont Nebraska; and Randy Amrein, 48, also of Fremont.
Authorities added that the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board were taking over the investigation. A spokesperson for the FAA confirmed the crash in an email and said the NTSB will be in charge of the investigation.
Jennifer Gabris, a spokesperson for the NTSB, said in a statement that an NTSB investigator was expected to arrive on the scene Saturday afternoon.
“Once on site, the investigator will begin the process of documenting the scene and examining the aircraft,” she said. “The aircraft will then be recovered to a secure facility for further evaluation.”
She added that during the on-scene phase of the investigative process, “the NTSB does not determine or speculate about the cause of the accident,” and that a preliminary report with more information will be available within 30 days.
The crash comes amid a slew of similar plane and helicopter crashes in recent weeks.
Last month, a single-engine airplane crashed into a home in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, killing the sole person on board and sparking a fire.
On April 10, a sightseeing helicopter crashed into the Hudson River near New York City, killing the pilot and a young family of five. The next day, another small plane crashed in Boca Raton, Florida, killing all three passengers on board.
And on April 12, a private plane crashed while it was preparing for a second landing attempt in New York’s Columbia County, again killing all passengers on board.
