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Small plane with 4 people on board crashes at Flint airport

Spokesman says plane was Avantair Piaggio

DETROIT – A small plane crashed Wednesday morning at Flint's Bishop International Airport.

The plane was an Avantair Piaggio Avanti P-180 aircraft, according to Avantair's chief operating officer, Kevin Beitzel.

"The aircraft was en route from Detroit to West Bend, Wisc.," Beitzal said in a statement Wednesday afternoon. "The aircraft declared an emergency in flight and diverted to Flint. There were two passengers and two crew members on board the aircraft and all persons on board are safe."

Chief Christopher Miller of the Bishop International Airport Authority described what happened as the plane attempted an emergency landing.

"The plane  touched down on runway 1836. Upon arrival, he veered to the right, flipped over once.  We had people inside.  We immediately started response. There ws no fire, no flames to put out so at that point, after we assessed that, we went in and started our emergency rescue," Miller said.

Because the plane was upside down, rescue crews had to pry open the door and remove the four people inside, who were strapped in their seats upside down.  They had minor injuries.

 Avantair and government agencies were investigating the crash and did not comment about a cause.

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