Four people were killed Tuesday when a Beechcraft King Air 300 medical transport plane registered N534AW crashed and caught fire near Chinle Airport on the Navajo Nation in northern Arizona.
The aircraft, operated by CSI Aviation, was flying from Albuquerque, New Mexico, with two pilots and two healthcare providers on board. It was scheduled to pick up a critically ill patient from the Indian Health Service hospital in Chinle and return to Albuquerque.
The crash occurred around 12:44, just before landing. The cause remains unknown and is under investigation by the FAA and NTSB. No patient was on board at the time of the accident.
Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren expressed sorrow, noting the victims had dedicated their lives to saving others. Their names have not yet been released. CSI Aviation confirmed the fatalities and said it is cooperating with the investigation.
Air medical transports are common on the Navajo Nation, which spans 27,000 square miles across Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, due to limited local access to advanced medical care.