Feras Freitekh: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know | Heavy.com

A small plane crashed in East Hartford, killing a student pilot, Feras M. Freitekh. (Nancy Blackmer/Contributed Photo)

A 28-year-old Jordanian national who was studying to become a pilot died after crashing a small plane Tuesday afternoon in Connecticut, and the instructor pilot who survived the crash said it was intentional.

Feras M. Freitekh has been identified as the student pilot who died in the crash on Main Street in East Hartford, CBS News reports.

The crash occurred near Pratt & Whitney, a defense contractor that makes jet engines for the military.

Local and state police, along with several federal agencies, including the FBI, NTSB and FAA, are now investigating the crash.

A high-ranking law enforcement source told the Hartford Courant there was an argument between the student pilot and the instructor prior to the crash. The source said the student pilot said he didn’t want to fly the plane any longer, but it was not clear why, according to the Courant.

The plane crashed just before 4 p.m. There were no serious injuries to anyone on the ground.

The surviving flight instructor, identified by the Courant as Arian Prevalla, was able to get out of the plane after the crash and is expected to survive.

Here’s what you need to know:

1. Freitekh Came to the United States in 2012 on a Temporary Visa for Flight School & Had a License to Fly a Single-Engine Plane

Feras Freitekh, who died in the crash, came to the United States from Jordan in 2012 on a temporary M-1 visa for flight school, CBS News reports.

His immigration status was later changed to an F-1 visa and he studied at a language school in Toledo, Ohio, the news network reports, before it eventually went back to an M-1 visa.

M-1 and F-1 visas are both student visas, according to the State Department.

The 28-year-old Freitekh has also lived in Orland Hills, Illinois, about 35 miles away from Chicago, the New York Times reports.

He began living there in April 2013, the Hartford Courant reports.

Freitekh obtained a private pilot certificate on May 29, 2015, and was licensed to fly a single-engine plane, according to the Times.

Steven Bourgoin: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

A 36-year-old man is suspected in a wrong-way crash that killed five teens on Interstate 89 in Williston, Vermont. He stole a cop car after the crash, police say.

2. The FBI & Local Police Raided an Apartment in Hartford Where He Lived With 3 Other Foreign Nationals Also Studying to Become Pilots

The FBI and local police raided an apartment on Annawan Street as part of the investigation, WVIT-TV reports.

Neighbors told WTIC-TV that four men lived together in the apartment targeted by police.

Sources told the Hartford Courant the three other men who lived there were also foreign nationals studying to become pilots.

Authorities searched Annawan Street ap't where Feras Freitekh lived late last night, found no evidence tying him to known terrorist groups

— Dave Altimari (@davealtimari) October 12, 2016

A source said 3 other foreign nationalists, also getting pilot's licenses, lived with Feras Freitekh and all 3 were interviewed and released

— Dave Altimari (@davealtimari) October 12, 2016

Hartford Police remained at the scene Wednesday morning. Lieutenant Brian Foley, the Hartford Police spokesman, said it was connected to a law enforcement investigation, adding that the scene is “safe and not active.”

HPD presence on Annawan St is related to an external Law Enforcement investigation. Scene is safe and not active.

— D/C Foley (@LtFoley) October 12, 2016

Foley said police had been at the scene through the night and “no suspects (are) at large,” and “no residents are in danger.”

3. Police Called the Pratt & Whitney Plant Near the Crash ‘Critical Infrastructure’

The crash happened near a major defense contractor, Pratt & Whitney, which manufactures military and commercial jet engines. East Hartford Police Chief called the company’s plant “critical infrastructure,” the Hartford Courant reports.

Police said the FBI was contacted because of the proximity to Pratt & Whitney.

The aerospace contractor issued a statement after the crash Tuesday:

We are aware of the incident that occurred this afternoon on Main Street. Our thoughts are with the people affected. It does not appear at this time that any Pratt & Whitney employees or contractors were involved. Additionally, there is no impact to our operation here in East Hartford other than restricted traffic flow to the facility’s main entrance on Main Street. We stand ready to assist local officials as needed. Additional queries should be directed to the appropriate local officials.

Police said they have not ruled anything out as far as a possible motive for the crash. They said they could not comment about whether terrorism is being investigated.

“Terrorism is a criminal act,” East Hartford Police spokesman Lieutenant Joshua Litwin said at a press conference. “There is a lot of criminal investigators on scene. Nothing has been ruled out.”

According to police, investigators have also not ruled out that the crash could have been accident, despite the claims from the surviving pilot that it was intentional.

The investigation remains “extremely active,” police said.

4. The Piper PA-34 Twin-Engine Plane Took Off From a Flight School at Nearby Brainard Airport

The Piper PA-34 twin-engine plane took off Tuesday afternoon from a flight school at Brainard Airport, not far from the scene of the crash, WFSB-TV reports.

The plane was making its final descent back to Brainard Airport when the crash occurred, the news station reports.

It struck a utility pole on Main Street in East Hartford during the crash, and then burst into flames.

East Hartford Police spokesman Lieutenant Joshua Litwin said there are two sets of controls on the plane, but it is not clear who was in control at the time of the crash. Litwin said both men on board the plane would have been able to take control.

A Piper PA-34 twin engine plane similar to the one that crashed in East Hartford. (Adrian Pingstone/Public Domain)

Jonathan Rucker told the Hartford Courant he saw the crash.

“I hear planes every day,” he said. “I heard a plane, then I didn’t hear anything. I looked up and the plane was just tipping over. It tipped to the left and dropped straight down. There was a loud bang, smoke and flame. It tipped to the left and just dropped like a rock.”

Another witness, Frank Crandall, told the Courant, “I saw the plane hit the power lines, go into a power pole and then hit just before a minivan and burst into flames. I thought the power lines were going to come down, so I gunned it.”

Part of Main Street near the scene of the crash remained closed Wednesday morning.

5. The Pilot Who Survived the Crash Suffered Serious Burns & Remains Hospitalized

The instructor pilot who survived the crash was hospitalized with serious burns, CBS News reports.

He was identified as Adrian Prevalla by the Hartford Courant. Officials say he is cooperating with the investigation.

He runs the Hartford Jet Center, according to his Linkedin profile. The flight school is based at Hartford-Brainard Airport, where the plane took off from on Tuesday.

Two people who were in a car near the scene of the crash were taken to the hospital after they were traumatized by what they saw, police say. But they were not injured.

Williston, Vermont, Crash: Photos to Remember the Victims

Five high school students — Eli Brookens, Mary Harris, Janie Cozzi, Liam Hale and Cyrus Zschau — were killed by a wrong-way driver in Williston, Vermont.