3 dead in Navy plane crash in north Georgia; search on for 4th person aboard

3 dead in North Ga. military crash

MORGANTON, Ga. — A Florida-based Navy plane crashed in the north Georgia woods on Monday, killing three people, and authorities were looking for a fourth person believed to be aboard, officials said.

Naval Air Station Pensacola spokesman Harry White said authorities have not confirmed whether the pilot was among those killed when a T-39N went down at around 4:26 p.m.

The plane was part of Training Air Wing 6, which conducts routine cross-country missions through Fannin County, where it crashed, about two hours north of Atlanta, on the edge of the North Carolina and Tennessee borders, White said.

Authorities don’t know what caused the plane to go down and are putting together an investigative team, White said. He did not release the victims’ names. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the agency is not investigating the military crash.

Media outlets early on reported the plane struck a house, but Fannin County Sheriff’s Office Maj. Keith Bosen said the plane just flew very close to the structure.

The crash also caused a brush fire.