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by CNN
Debris litters a field near
Houston's Hobby Airport after a Gulfstream jet crashed Monday.
November 22, 2004
CNN) -- A plane
that had been scheduled to take former President George H.W. Bush to
Ecuador crashed Monday morning in Houston, Texas, killing all three crew
members.
"'I was deeply
saddened to learn of the plane crash this morning," Bush said in a
written statement released shortly after the crash. "I've flown with
this group before and knew them well. I join in sending my heartfelt
condolences to each and every member of their families."
The cause of the
crash -- just south of Hobby airport -- was not immediately known.
Television station KHOU reported that the plane had apparently clipped a
light pole prior to the crash.
The aircraft, a
Gulfstream-II jet, departed from Love Field in Dallas and crashed on
approach, one-and-a-half miles from the airport, shortly after 6 a.m. (7
a.m. ET).
A lamppost is bent over double,
apparently hit by the plane as it crashed.
It burst into
flames when it hit the ground, and fire crews rushed to the scene. Jack
Williams of the Houston Fire Department said no one on the ground was
hurt.
Roger Smith,
spokesman for the Houston airport system, said visibility Monday morning
was "not ideal," but not poor enough to alter operations. Video from the
time of the crash showed some fog and haze.
The Federal
Aviation Administration is investigating the incident, as it does with
all crashes.
Bush canceled his
Monday trip to Ecuador, where he was going to speak as part of a lecture
series, said his spokesman, Tom Frechette.
FAA spokesman
Roland Herwig said the plane is owned by Jet Place Inc. of Tulsa,
Oklahoma.
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