Photos by Eric Brady | The Roanoke Times

Todd Gunther, (center) an investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board, talks with Virginia State Police and other local personnel before a press conference concerning the crash of a Pilatus PC-12 plane in a field in Rockbridge County.

The plane went down in Rockbridge County on the McCormick Farm, which is owned by Virginia Tech, and left a debris field about 100 yards long.

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Updated 9:09 p.m.

At least two people were killed in today's plane crash in Rockbridge County, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

The flight originated at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey and was going to Tampa Executive Airport in Florida, FAA spokesman Jim Peters said.

The pilot reported losing an exterior panel and was going to divert to Lynchburg Regional Airport, Peters said.

According to online records, the plane was registered to Nicholas, Elliott & Jordan LLC of Tampa. The principal of the corporation, Dan Dorsch, is a licensed pilot.

Dorsch’s son, Jordan Dorsch, said this afternoon that his parents had been in New York for the weekend and were supposed to fly back to Florida today. They never arrived at the Tampa airport, however, and Jordan Dorsch said he had been unable to contact them.

Dan Dorsch is a former CEO of Checkers Drive-In Restaurants, having served there from 1999 to 2003. According to media reports, he owns businesses in central Florida, including several Papa John's Pizza outlets and Fun Bike Center Motorsports.

Updated 6:16 p.m.

No one survived the small plane crash that happened this morning in Rockbridge County, but authorities aren’t saying how many people were on the aircraft when it went down on a farm near Interstate 81.

At a press conference that just ended, National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Todd Gunther, from the agency’s office of aviation safety, said at least one person is dead.

The crash happened shortly after 10 a.m. A resident called Rockbridge County dispatch with a report of a plane in distress. The plane went down on the McCormick Farm, which is owned by Virginia Tech, and left a debris field about 100 yards long.

The plane is a Pilatus PC-12, is a single-engine low-wing monoplane. Seating configurations for the plane can vary.

Gunther would not release any information on the victim’s identity, on the possible cause of the crash or on where the plane had come from or was going. Authorities also did not release the tail number of the aircraft, which can be used to track ownership and flight plans.

He did say that the aircraft was flying at 26,000 feet, then climbed to 32,000 feet before dropping off the radar.

An NTSB team will continue investigating the crash this week and will be joined by representatives of the Federal Aviation Administration, he said.

Updated 1:45 p.m.

Robert Foresman, Rockbridge County's emergency management coordinator, says one person was killed in the small plane crash.

Additional details will be released at a press conference that starts at 2 p.m.

Posted 11:30 a.m.

State Police in Salem have confirmed that they are working a plane crash in Rockbridge County near McCormick Farm on Raphine Road.

Authorities could not comment yet on what type of aircraft or the number of passengers involved.