A medical transport jet carrying a child patient, her mother and four others slammed into a Northeast Philadelphia neighborhood on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, creating a massive explosion that caused fires and damage throughout the area.
The plane crashed 30 seconds after takeoff from Northeast Philadelphia airport, which primarily serves business jets and charter flights.
While officials have not yet released the identities of the victims of the crash, they did reveal more details about who they were and why they were on the aircraft.
The plane was headed to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Springfield, Missouri. From there it would have traveled to Tijuana, Mexico, for its final destination.
Shai Gold, a spokesperson for Jet Rescue Air Ambulance – the plane’s operator – told NBC Philadelphia the six people on board included a girl, her mother, a pilot, copilot, doctor and paramedic.
The child who was on board had received treatment at Shriners Children’s Philadelphia for a life-threatening condition, Gold said.
"All I can say is, the patient was sponsored by a third-partner charity to undergo life-saving treatment in the U.S.," Gold said. "She did her course of care. She was going home. She fought quite a lot to survive, and unfortunately, this tragedy on the way home."
NBC10's Claudia Vargas spoke with Jet Rescue Air Ambulance about the small plane that crashed in Northeast Philadelphia on Friday.
Shriners spokesperson Mel Bower told NBC Philadelphia the girl had just been released from the hospital on Friday.
“I know that the team there in Philadelphia today had a sendoff for her,” he said. “It’s always a meaningful but yet emotional time for us. It’s really just been compounded by the tragic ending.”
Due to privacy laws, neither Gold nor Bower could reveal the child’s identity. Bower spoke about the impact the crash has had on the hospital’s staff, however.
“It’s devastating news. All of our patients are like family to us. It’s not just about the care that they received. It is the whole experience of working with them and their families,” he said. “The care that they receive is much more than just clinical. It is very devastating to us. All of our patients are very dear to us and to have such a tragedy happen, it’s just so hard for all of us. Every child deserves to live their best life and that’s our goal. And to see one end so tragically is just heartbreaking.”
In addition to the six people on board the jet, six others who were on the ground were injured during the crash. They were all taken to Temple University Hospital's Jeanes Campus. Three of those victims were treated and released while three others remain in the hospital, a source told NBC Philadelphia. Officials have not yet revealed their conditions.
The victims include an 11-year-old boy who suffered head injuries, a 31-year-old man who suffered head injuries and a 30-year-old woman who suffered facial injuries, according to the source.
