NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. - A single-engine Cessna slammed into the ground and burst into flames Friday at the North Las Vegas Airport, killing the pilot and passenger.
''Its left wing was real high and every time the pilot tried to bring it down the wind took it right back up,'' said witness Tom Winters, who was driving by the airport right before the crash. ''The wind then took it and cartwheeled the plane into the ground.''
The plane burst into flames about 9:45 a.m.
The names of the victims were not immediately released, but airport officials said the plane was registered to the Arizona Flying Club out of Tucson, Ariz.
''They had made a couple of attempted landings and then crashed,'' said Hillarie Grey, a Clark County aviation department spokeswoman.
The plane crashed in a dirt clearing to the side of a runway.
The airport was closed after the crash, but reopened less than two hours later, officials said.
