A passenger died after a jet experienced 'severe turbulence' while flying over New England
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- A passenger died after a jet encountered "'severe turbulence" while flying over New England.
- Officials have not confirmed how the passenger died.
- While turbulence on flights is extremely common, it causing death is rare.
Officials said a passenger died after a jet experienced "severe turbulence" while flying over New England on Saturday.
The passenger was aboard the jet with four other people at the time of the incident, Sarah Sulick, a spokesperson for the National Transportation Safety Board, said, according to the Associated Press.
Officials did not disclose how the passenger died or if they were wearing a seatbelt, and the extent of damage to the jet is unclear.
When the fatal incident occurred, the business jet was flying from Keene, New Hampshire, to Leesburg, Virginia.
The board is investigating the incident and is currently interviewing the two crew members and surviving passengers, Sulick said. The jet's cockpit voice and data recorders have been sent to their headquarters.
The jet is owned by Conexon, a company based in Kansas City, Missouri, that brings high-speed internet to rural areas, according to a Federal Aviation Administration database, AP reported.
The National Transportation Safety Board and Conexon did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
While turbulence on flights is extremely common, causing death is extremely rare.
"I can't remember the last fatality due to turbulence," Robert Sumwalt, a former NTSB chair and executive director of the Center for Aviation and Aerospace Safety at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, told AP.
On Wednesday, seven passengers were injured after a flight experienced "significant turbulence" and had to be diverted to Washington Dulles International Airport.