This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

Seven people have been killed after a private plane crashed in an airfield in Massachusetts.

"There were no survivors," said Matthew Brelis, a spokesman for the Massachusetts port authority, which operates Hanscom Field in Bedford, where the Gulfstream IV crashed as it was leaving at 9.40pm for Atlantic City international airport in New Jersey.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the people on board and their loved ones," Brelis said before a news conference announcing the deaths.

The names of the victims were not immediately released. Officials did not say what they thought had caused the crash. They said the national transportation safety board would investigate.

Nearby residents recounted seeing a fireball and feeling the blast of the explosion shake their homes. Jeff Patterson told the Boston Globe that he saw a fireball about 60ft in the air and suspected the worst for those aboard the plane.

Patterson's 14-year-old son Jared said: "I heard a big boom, and I thought at the time that someone was trying to break into my house because it shook it. I thought someone was banging on the door trying to get in."

The airfield, which serves the public, was closed after the crash. Brelis said responders were still on the scene early Sunday morning.

Hanscom Field is about 20 miles north-west of Boston, and acts as a corporate reliever for Boston Logan international airport.