FedEx 727 Crashes On Landing

A FedEx Boeing 727 cargo jet crashed and burned short of the runway Friday at Tallahassee Airport. The three-member crew escaped with minor injuries, the company said.

The crew members were taken by ambulance to a hospital where they were in fair condition.

The three-engine jet, FedEx Flight 1478 from Memphis, landed a half mile short of the runway at 5:43 a.m., said Kathleen Bergen, an FAA spokeswoman at regional offices in Atlanta.

It wasn't immediately known why it didn't reach the runway.

"We can't speculate on the cause," said Jess Bunn, the FedEx spokesman at company headquarters in Memphis, Tenn. "The National Transportation Safety Board and FedEx's own safety team will be investigating."

Brooke Wilson, spokeswoman at Tallahassee Memorial Health Care, said the three were in fair condition. They were being checked for broken bones; they did not suffer burns, she said.

A mass of metal could be seen about a half a mile from the terminal. Television footage showed orange flames burning in the center of the wreckage at dawn.

Tallahassee officials said the city-owned airport would remain closed until at least noon.

The plane was being monitored by air traffic controllers in Jacksonville when it crashed, said David Pollard, the airport's operations superintendent. The Tallahassee control tower does not begin normal operations until 6 a.m.

There was fog in the area at the time of the crash, but there was no indication that weather was a factor, Pollard said.

Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board were traveling to the site Friday morning.

The crash was likely to delay the departures and arrivals of more than 15 flights. The airport is served by Delta Air Lines, US Airways, AirTran Airways and Northwest Airlines.

Friday was the last day to qualify for state elections, meaning candidates from around the state had to file paperwork in Tallahassee by noon. State elections director Clay Roberts said he had spoken to several candidates whose paperwork was probably on the plane.

Elections officials were scurrying to determine whether they could legally extend the qualifying deadline for politicians whose paperwork was on the plane. Also a concern was candidates who intended to fly to Tallahassee to file papers in person who couldn't because the airport was closed.