Poland Plane Crash That Killed 11 Subject Of Criminal Investigation

A plane crash in Poland that killed 11 people, leaving only one survivor, is the subject of a criminal investigation, according to an AP report.

The plane took off with 12 people on board from Rudniki Airport in Southern Poland. Most of those aboard were parachutists. The crash occurred shortly after takeoff, leaving the Piper Navajo burning in an orchard in the nearby village of Topolow. Authorities in Poland are conducting DNA testing to determine the identities of many of the victims.

According to a report in the CS Monitor, the prosecutors in Poland have opened the investigation to determine whether the plane crash was caused by some form of foul play. Other possibilities being investigated include the possibility that the plane crashed due to a mechanical malfunction, pilot or other human error and problems with the organization of the flight, which was for the purpose of training parachutists.

Poland’s authorities opened the investigation on Sunday.

The lone survivor of the plane crash in Poland was hospitalized in Czestochowa with serious injuries, including injuries to his pelvis, according to a CNN World report. The Polish plane crash survivor was listed in stable, but serious condition.

According to a Fox News report, the plane was owned by the private parachute instruction company that was flying it on the day of the crash.

Of course, if foul play is discovered in the plane crash, the obvious next question is who wanted to blow up a small plane full of parachuting students and instructors and why. The identities of the victims are not available, nor is it known if anyone who would be the likely target of an attack was abroad.

The BBC reports that witnesses claim that the plane that crashed in Poland made strange noises before going down, likely leading to the criminal investigation. Witnesses are quotes saying:

“It was flying from the south and the engine was making strange sounds. It was flying very low, close to houses. It tilted to one side on its wing.”

“There were open parachutes lying on the ground. The worst thing was that one person tried to get out of it (the plane) but slid back inside. We tried to help them, but there was nothing we could do. Everything was on fire, even the ground.”

Joana Lazar, a spokesperson for the police, said:

“We have established that just after the crash local residents came running towards the wreckage and helped to save one of the passengers from the plane. A 40-year-old man was taken to hospital.”

The Piper Navajo’s crash was the worst plane crash involving a plane from Poland since 2010, when Polish President Lech Kaczynski was killed in a plane crash in Russia. That plane crash killed a total of 96 of Poland’s top officials.