‘Casualties’ in US air race crash

16 September 2011 Last updated at 21:52 ET

Jimmy Leeward has been racing planes since the 1970s

Scores of people have been injured after an airplane crashed near a grandstand at an air race near Reno, Nevada, a medical official says.

The vintage World War 2-era P-51 Mustang crashed at about 1630 local time (2330 GMT) at the National Championship Air Races.

There are unconfirmed reports that between three and 12 people were killed in the crash.

Eyewitnesses said wreckage and body parts were strewn across the airfield.

‘Stunt pilot’

Stephanie Kruse, a spokeswoman for the Regional Emergency Medical Service Authority, told AP news agency that 75 people had been injured, 25 of them critically, and another 25 seriously.

“This is a very large incident, probably one of the largest this community has seen in decades,” she said.

“The community is pulling together to try to deal with the scope of it. The hospitals have certainly geared up and staffed up to deal with it.”

Local news broadcaster KOLO-TV reported earlier that at least six ambulances were on the airfield.

The Mustang, named “The Galloping Ghost”, was flown by well-known racing pilot Jimmy Leeward.

Mike Houghton, head of the Reno Air Racing Association, told a news conference that Leeward was killed in the crash.

He said the real estate developer had been racing planes since the mid-1970s and that most of his family had been at Friday’s event.

He added that Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval was on his way to the scene.

Leeward’s web says he has flown in more than 120 races and served as a stunt pilot for numerous movies.

‘Like a massacre’

Ronald Sargis, who was sitting in the box-seat area, said spectators could tell the plane was in trouble before it crashed.

“About six or seven boxes down from us, it impacted into the front row,” Sargis told KCRA-TV in Sacramento. He added: “It appeared to be just pulverized.”

Jeff Martinez, a local weatherman who was just outside the air race grounds, said he saw the plane veer to the right and then crash into the ground.

Mr Martinez said he saw “pieces and parts going everywhere”.

The Reno Gazette-Journal has published a witness video of the crash posted to Tube.

Eyewitness Dr Gerald Lent, of Reno, told the newspaper: “It’s just like a massacre. It’s like a bomb went off. There are people lying all over the runway.

“One guy was cut in half. There’s blood everywhere. There’s arms and legs. One guy just said, ‘hey, there’s another foot over here.’”

National Guard members who were already on helped with the response, air show spokesman Mike Draper told CNN.

Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were also at the scene, he added.

Democratic Nevada Senator Harry Reid issued a statement saying he was “deeply saddened” about the tragedy.

“My thoughts are with the families of those who have lost their lives and with those who were wounded in this horrific tragedy,” he said.

The National Championship Air Races are held every year in September in Reno.

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