DALLAS (AP) — A National Transportation official investigating what caused two historic military planes to crash mid-air during an air show that killed six people said Sunday that one of the key questions for investigators is why the aircraft apparently shared the same area just before the impact.
A World War II-era bomber and a fighter jet collided and crashed into the ground in a ball of flames Saturday, leaving crumpled wreckage in a grassy area inside the perimeter of Dallas Executive Airport, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) from The city center .  Several videos posted on social media showed the fighter jet flying at the bomber.
“One of the things we would probably try to determine is why these aircraft were at the same altitude in the same airspace at the same time,” Michael Graham, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board, told a news conference.  .
The crash came three years after a bomber crashed in Connecticut that killed seven, and amid continued concern over the safety of air shows featuring older warplanes.  The company that owned the planes that flew in the Wings Over Dallas show had other crashes in its 60-year history.
The crash claimed six lives, Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins tweeted Sunday, citing the county medical examiner.  Authorities are continuing to work to identify the victims, he said.  Dallas Fire-Rescue said there were no reports of injuries on the ground.
Armin Mizani, mayor of Keller, Texas, said Terry Barker, a retired pilot who lived in Keller, was in the B-17 bomber that crashed.  Mizani said he learned of Barker’s death from his family.
Mizani said Barker’s death was difficult for his town of 50,000, where many of the residents know each other.
“It’s definitely a great loss to our community,” he said.  “We mourn.”
Barker was an Army veteran who flew helicopters during his military service.  He later worked for American Airlines for 36 years before retiring in 2020, Mizani said.
Major Curtis J.  Rowe, a member of the Ohio Air Patrol Wing, was a crew chief in the B-17, his brother-in-law Andy Keller told The Associated Press on Sunday.  Rowe, of Hilliard, Ohio, did air shows several times a year because he fell in love with World War II aircraft, Keller said.
The Federal Aviation Administration was also to investigate, officials said.  The planes collided and crashed at about 1:20 p.m., the FAA said.
Graham said five people were in the B-17 Flying Fortress bomber and a pilot was the only person in the P-63 Kingcobra fighter jet.  The planes belong to the Commemorative Air Force, the company that held the air show.  The planes are flown by highly trained volunteers, often retired pilots, said Hank Coates, president of the Commemorative Air Force.
John Cudahy is president of the International Council of Air Shows, a trade group that sets standards for air shows and oversees the training of pilots and “air marshals,” who serve as flight controllers for an event.  Cudahy said usually at air shows there is a Friday rehearsal where the pilots fly the entire show to practice, so Saturday’s show is actually the second time the pilots fly the show.  There are also detailed updates each day to go over the plan for the air show and cover exactly where each pilot will be and their roles on the show.
“It is still early to understand what happened yesterday.  I’ve watched the tape several times and I can’t figure it out and I’ve been doing this for 25 years,” Cudahy said.
Investigators will examine wreckage from both aircraft, interview crews present at the air show and obtain pilot training and aircraft maintenance records.
“We’re going to look at what we can and let the evidence basically lead us to the appropriate conclusions.  At this point, we’re not going to speculate” on the cause, Graham said.
A preliminary report from the NTSB is expected in four to six weeks, while a final report will take up to 18 months to complete.
Air shows must get special waivers from the FAA, and all pilots must demonstrate their skills in low-flying and other maneuvers used at air shows, said John Cox, a former airline captain with more than 50 years of experience.  Cox is also the founder of Safety Operating Systems, a company that helps smaller airlines and corporate flight services around the world with safety planning.
Each air show is overseen by an air boss, Cox said.
“If any adjustments need to be made, it’s the air force boss who makes those calls and the pilots comply with that,” he said.  Additionally, any pilot with a mechanical problem would report it to the air force boss, he said.
Airshows typically rely on highly detailed plans, including unforeseen emergencies, Cox said.  For example, any pilot in trouble could break out of formation and go to a designated area free of other planes identified by a landmark.
A cornerstone of US air power during World War II, the B-17 is a massive four-engine bomber used in daylight raids against Germany.  The Kingcobra, an American fighter plane, was used primarily by Soviet forces during the war.  Most B-17s were scrapped at the end of World War II, and only a few remain today, largely on display in museums and air shows, according to Boeing.
The Commemorative Air Force has had previous crashes during its 60-year history, including a fatal crash in 1995 near Odessa, Texas, involving a B-26 bomber that killed five crew members, according to an NTSB report.  The plane crashed while training for an air show.  The NTSB determined that the probable cause was the pilot’s failure to maintain minimum airspeed for flight.
In 2001, two separate crashes in West Texas involving team-owned planes — one in April and one in May — killed three people.  In June 2005, two people were killed when a team-owned single-engine plane crashed in Williamson, Georgia.
The Commemorative Air Force, previously called the Confederate Air Force until members changed its name in 2001 to avoid any association with the Civil War, was headquartered in Midland, Texas, but moved to Dallas in 2014.
Wings Over Dallas bills itself as “America’s Premier World War II Airshow,” according to a website promoting the event.  The show was scheduled for Nov. 11-13, Veterans Day weekend, and visitors were to see more than 40 World War II-era aircraft.  Saturday’s afternoon flight schedule included a “bomber parade” and “fighter escort” featuring B-17s and P-63s.
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Funk reported from Omaha, Nebraska, and Lozano from Houston.