Fiery plane crash claims four lives at DeKalb-Peachtree Airport

DEKALB COUNTY — The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are working to discover the cause of the Cessna P210N’s accident.

The crash happened around 1:00. Keith Berry, a photographer from Decatur, was shooting at PDK under blue skies dotted with puffy clouds. Positioned near the restaurant, his camera was aimed through the fence at the takeoffs when the Cessna’s movement caught his eye through the lens.

Berry says it appeared the plane, described online as a six-seat Cessna Centurion, had abruptly aborted its takeoff as it bounced or hopped on Runway 21L.

“It saw it bounce and flip over,” says Berry, who says he put down the camera as he watched in disbelief. “And in a matter of seconds, you had fire everywhere.

“You could see the wing bent, as it flipped over on the wing, and you could see nobody get out or anything like that.”

As flames engulfed the plane, Berry began snapping photographs, capturing the glimmering heat waves and plumes of black smoke.

DeKalb Fire Rescue firefighters doused the flames, but confirm that none of the four people on board survived. FAA personnel arrived on the scene shortly before 5:00 and took over the scene.

“It happened pretty quick,” Berry says. “When you see it, your heart’s beating, you’re like, ‘Did it happen? Are they filming a movie or something?’ But it was real.”

He agrees that seeing it play out in front of him was devastating.

“It’s uncomfortable. It’s uncomfortable to think about it,” says Berry. “You just came out here to get some shots hopefully of planes landing and taking off, and not of somebody losing their life.”

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