A family of four was killed just after taking off in a small plane north of San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday afternoon, authorities said.
A Piper PA-24 with a couple and their two children on board crashed shortly after 12:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. ET) after taking off from Kestrel Airpark in Spring Branch, a short distance from the crash site, NBC station WOAI reported.
The plane crashed into a fence before coming to rest in a brushy area just east of U.S. Highway 281 North.
Comal County Sheriff's deputies arrived to find the plane fully engulfed in flames and staff at a nearby animal pet and feed store attempting to put out the fire, Capt. Tommy Ward said.
The four people killed were Michael Galloway, 38, who was piloting the plane, his wife Heather Galloway, 32, and their two children Clayton Galloway, 10, and Cheyenne Galloway, 8, Ward said.
Heather Galloway was a bus driver for the Comal County Independent School District, and their two children were students at a school in the district, Ward said.
Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board investigators were en route to the crash site Saturday evening, FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford said.