Small plane crash in eastern Dominican Republic kills 7

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) – A small plane crashed shortly after takeoff Monday from a resort area on the eastern tip of the Dominican Republic, killing all seven people on board, officials said.

The pilot of the single-engine Piper PA-32 was apparently attempting to make an emergency landing after taking off from Punta Cana when the plane struck the ground in a golf course adjacent to the airport and burst into flames, according to Civil Aviation Institute spokesman Hector Olivo.

The plane was en route to the Samana Peninsula off the north coast with a pilot and six passengers. Local police said four of the passengers were tourists from Spain and two were from Britain. The pilot was from the Dominican Republic.

Olivo said civil aviation officials were dispatched to the scene to investigate the cause of the crash.