Single-engine plane crashes near Maryland playground, killing three

A single-engine Piper Cherokee crashed near a playground in Bowie, Maryland, killing all three people aboard late Saturday, Maryland State Police said. Around 11:30 p.m., the aircraft—according to police—went down in a wooded area just steps from a residential complex, near a public playground and close to Routes 50 and 301. Authorities received an iPhone crash alert about 15 minutes after the crash, prompting a coordinated ground and aerial search. The plane was found around 3:45 a.m. Sunday. Investigators believe the Cherokee belonged to a flight school in Montgomery County and may have been on a training flight, traveling from Ocean City, New Jersey to Montgomery County Airpark. The victims were reported as three men, whose identities were not released. The FAA and NTSB will investigate, with the NTSB in charge.