Add CategoryA SMALL jet aeroplane has crashed into a residential neighbourhood near the US capital, killing six people.
The Embraer EMB-500 twin-engine jet was a mile (1.6 kilometres) away from Montgomery County Airport, preparing to land, when the accident occurred, according to a statement from the Federal Aviation Administration.
Blaze contained ... a firefighter stands outside the smouldering house in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Picture: AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana Source: AP
Debris field ... a part of the jet landed in the driveway of a neighbouring house to the one in which thre4e people were killed. Picture: AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana
Six dead ... the victims included a woman and her two young sons, authorities said. Pictured: AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana Source: AP
The three people aboard the plane and three people inside a house were killed when the plane went down, a county spokesman said on Twitter.
Debris from the plane hit several houses and ignited a large fire in the Washington-area suburb of Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Random tragedy ... authorities are yet to determine what caused the plane to come down. Picture: AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana Source: AP
Destroyed ... the small plane smashed the timber two-storey house. Picture: AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana Source: AP
Photos from the crash site showed the wreckage of a one two-storey home, where an exterior wall was destroyed leaving charred wood and shattered glass.
Local media reported a mother and two young children were killed in their house.
Federal aircraft authorities were on the scene of the crash and are conducting an investigation into its cause.
The plane had departed from North Carolina earlier in the morning.
Crash scene investigation ... an official from the National Transportation Safety Board examines wreckage near the site where the plane came down. Picture: Win McNamee/Getty Images/AFP Source: AFP
Confirming the worst ... Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Chief Steve Lohr speaks to the media near the crash site. Picture: AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana Source: AP