VIDEO: A burning engine and a reported fire on board a Douglas C-54 aircraft that crashed last month near Fairbanks preceded the crash that claimed two lives, according to investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board.
The preliminary report by the NTSB was released Thursday morning, detailing the last moments of the plane that crashed into the Tanana River just minutes after taking off from Fairbanks International Airport on the morning of April 23.
The crash, which left behind a smoldering trail of wreckage on the banks of the river near Kallenberg Road, killed two unnamed people on board. The identities have yet to be released, pending the results of the investigation and notifying families.