Small Plane Crashes Near Bowie Residential Neighborhood

BOWIE, MD — Three people died in a plane crash late Saturday night.

At approximately 11:45 p.m. June 20, an iPhone crash alert was received by Prince George’s County Public Safety Communications indicating a crash had happened in the area of Route 50 and 301.

A ground and aerial search for an aircraft was carried out by multiple first responders that included the Prince George’s County Fire Department, Maryland State Police assigned to the Special Operations Division, Criminal Enforcement Division and College Park Barrack, officers from the Anne Arundel County Police Department, Prince George’s County Police Department and the Bowie City Police Department.

The aircraft was found early Sunday morning at approximately 3:45 a.m. in a wooded area close to a residential area off of Scarlett Oak Court in Bowie. Forensic analysts from the Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division responded to process the scene for evidence.

The three men on board were pronounced dead at the scene by emergency medical service personnel.

The preliminary investigation indicates that at approximately 11:30 p.m. June 20, a single engine Piper Cherokee with a pilot and two passengers on board were en route from Ocean City, New Jersey, to the Montgomery County Air Park, when for reasons unknown at this time, the plane crashed into a wooded area in Bowie. There were no other injuries reported, according to Maryland State Police.

Investigators believe the aircraft belongs to a local flight school in Montgomery County. Police believe the aircraft may have been participating in a training flight.

The identification of the three men on board is pending next of kin notification.

The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration have been notified and is leading the ongoing investigation.