According to this article, commercial flights to/fm GNV cancelled until mon afternoon

[FN FAL]

3 killed in plane crash at Gainesville Regional Airport

The Associated Press
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Three people died Sunday when their plane crashed and sparked a fire at the Gainesville Regional Airport, authorities said.

The aircraft crashed shortly before noon into a sport utility vehicle parked outside the airport, sending the vehicle through a terminal wall, said Sgt. Keith Kameg, spokesman for the Gainesville Police Department.

The plane, a twin-engine Beech B-60, was taking off from the airport and circled several times before attempting to land, but there was no distress call from the plane, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said. It was unknown where the plane was headed.

The plane was manufactured in 1977 and registered to OCEM Avionics Inc. of Gainesville, according to FAA records. A message left at a telephone listing for the company was not immediately returned.

Approximately 100 to 150 people were inside the terminal when the crash occurred, but no other injuries were reported, police said. The identities of the three people killed in the crash were not released.

The terminal was evacuated and would remain closed until Monday, airport spokeswoman Michelle Danisovszky said.

While privately owned aircraft continued taking off and landing at the airport Sunday, commercial flights were suspended until Monday afternoon, she said.

US Airways, Delta, Continental and Northwest Airlines operate flights from the Gainesville airport to Atlanta, Charlotte, Memphis, Miami and Tampa. It was not immediately clear how many commercial flights were affected Sunday.

 

[Floyd R. Turbo]

From the Gainesville Sun, with pictures:

http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060416/NEWS/60416004

 

[EDUC8-or]

Our flight to GNV was cancelled yesterday, as well as one this morning.

 

[FN FAL]

http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AIRPORT_CRASH?SITE=WIMIL&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2006-04-17-02-43-15


Officials did not release the victim's identities, but relatives told The Gainesville Sun they included a retired University of Florida engineering professor and his former student, who were testing a new autopilot system they had developed.

Pilot Guiseppe Basile, 69, Steve Varosi, 40, and Varosi's 12-year-old nephew, Michael Varosi, died in the crash, relatives told the paper.

Apparently, according to this article, they may have been testing a new autopilot system.