Plane Crash Near Fort Lauderdale Airport

Three people are dead after a small plane crashed in a car park near a Florida airport.

CBS Miami reports smoke could be seen billowing from what is believed to be the wreckage of a Piper PA31 Navajo twin engine plane that went down in Fort Lauderdale on Friday afternoon.

Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport public information officer Chaz Adams said the plane experienced engine problems shortly after take-off and had circled to return to the airport when it went down.

All three people aboard were killed. Nobody on the ground was injured.

Witnesses said it sounded like the engine stalled just before the plane crashed.

The plane, which can seat up to eight people, appeared to have gone down in a tow truck company's car park near the airport.

Live TV footage showed close to a dozen burned cars and fire crews walking among the wreckage.

The executive airport is about five miles away from the larger Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.