WINDSOR LOCKS, CT – When a vintage plane crashed at Bradley International Airport, killing seven onboard and injuring eight other people, it caused the airport to close for more than three hours on Wednesday.

But once the victims, which include an employee who was on the ground and a firefighter who responded to the emergency, were cared for and the scene was secured for investigators, the airport was able to resume flights, said Kevin E. Dillon, executive director and chief executive officer for the Connecticut Airport Authority.

During a press conference about the crash, Dillon joined other officials to first express his condolences to the families of the victims of the crash and wished the survivors a speedy recovery. He then discussed how the crash will impact the airport, which is the second-largest in New England.

There were “significant impacts” in terms of flight cancelations but as the airport was able to reopen and flights resumed by the evening many delayed flights were able to take off, Dillon said.

About 20 percent, or 39, of the total scheduled flights at the airport were canceled and an additional 19 flights were delayed, which is 10 percent of the activity, he said.

Bradley plane crash kills 7: NTSB official surprised anyone survived

A preliminary report should be completed in about 10 days.

Some of the flights that were supposed to land at the airport were diverted to T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island for a few hours during the crisis, he said.

The plane, a World War II B-17 Flying Fortress bomber, was offering rides to paying customers during the “Wings of Freedom” tour when it crashed.

The plane had taken off from Runway 6 at about 9:45 a.m. and soon after the pilot contacted the radio control tower to say there was a problem. The plane circled around and attempted to land on the same runway five minutes later, but the pilot landed short of the runway, struck an instrument landing stanchion, veered to the right and traveled over a grassy area before striking a truck and de-icing building. It then caught fire, said Jennifer Homendy, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board which is investigating the crash.

Three crew and 10 passengers were on board and seven were killed. In addition, two airport employees were working at the de-icing station and one was injured. A firefighter was also injured when putting out the flames, she said.

The airport was closed until 1:30 p.m., but by Wednesday evening most operations had resumed, Dillon said.

“We are anticipating that tomorrow (Thursday) will be pretty much back to normal,” he said.

Anyone traveling on Thursday is still encouraged to contact their airline before coming to the airport to make sure there are no changes or delays, Dillon said.

But while the investigation is continuing, Runway 6 – the main runway where the crash occurred - will remain closed, he said.

“We have the capacity to operate with one runway," he said. "We are working with NTSB to get the runway open as soon as possible.”

One of the concerns as the weather gets colder is the condition of the de-icing facility, Dillon said.

The facility was damaged in the crash, but the extent of the damage and the repairs needed had not been determined yet, he said.

This is the first serious crash at the airport in many years, Dillon said.

“Bradley has a good safety record,” he said. “It has been decades since there has been an accident.”

The crash is under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board with the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Airport Authority, the FBI, the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.

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