On Might 3, 2025, a small single-engine Van’s RV-10 plane crashed right into a residential neighborhood in Simi Valley, California, killing two individuals onboard—a pilot and a passenger—and one canine. The crash occurred round 1:50 p.m. native time within the 200 block of Excessive Meadow Road, Wooden Ranch, damaging two properties and igniting fires at each properties. The Ventura County Hearth Division reported that the aircraft, which departed from William J. Fox Airfield in Lancaster en path to Camarillo Airport, crashed into the yard and eating room of 1 dwelling and impacted one other, inflicting structural harm and fires.
No residents or firefighters had been injured, and occupants of the 2 properties evacuated safely. Arman Hovakemian, a resident, witnessed the aircraft flying low and spiraling earlier than it struck his property, the place he had been doing yard work moments earlier. He and his spouse fled as fires unfold, with neighbors calling 911. The second dwelling, owned by P.J. Van Kralingen, sustained harm to its household room, and two of their canines went lacking through the incident. Roughly 40 firefighters extinguished the blaze and performed overhaul operations, with the Simi Valley Police Division and health worker confirming the fatalities. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Nationwide Transportation Security Board (NTSB) are investigating the trigger, which stays unclear, although safety footage confirmed the aircraft circling low for practically three minutes earlier than the crash.
This incident follows one other lethal crash in California on January 2, 2025, when a Van’s RV-10 crashed right into a furnishings warehouse in Fullerton, killing two (a pilot and his 16-year-old daughter) and injuring 19 staff. Posts on X mirror public shock, with some noting the frequency of small aircraft crashes in Southern California, although these sentiments are inconclusive with out additional proof.
For those who’d like particulars on the investigation, comparisons to the Fullerton crash, or real-time X sentiment, let me know
