Plane owned by Mötley Crüe's Vince Neil crashes at Scottsdale ...

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Plane owned by Motley Crue singer crashes in Arizona

A Learjet collided with another plane after it veered off the runway at a Scottsdale, Arizona, airport. The plane was owned by Vince Neal.

A plane that took off from Austin and was intending to land at the Scottsdale Airport last night crashed into another airplane, leaving two critically injured and one dead. 

Airport officials have reported that the landing gear of the involved Learjet 35A failed upon arrival, causing the plane to start veering. After veering, the plane would go on to leave the runway and crash into a parked airplane. 

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, four people were on the Learjet and one person was on the parked Gulfstream jet. In addition to the person who died, three others were injured, two critically.

While not actually on the plane, Vince Neil, lead singer of Mötley Crüe, was the owner of the private plane.

Mötley Crüe singer Vince Neil shares statement on plane crash

"Mr. Neil's thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved, and he is grateful for the critical aid of the first responders today," said a statement from Worrick Robinson, Neil's legal representative.

Nationwide shortages define airports as near misses start to mount

Two weeks ago a horrific crash look place in D.C. and was the first incident of that scale in 16 years and the deadliest crash in the U.S. since 9/11. While crashes of this magnitude are rare, recent years have shown a growing trend of near misses at airports across the country.

In addition to the near miss at Austin-Bergstrom, in January of 2023, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines planes nearly collided at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. In February 2022, a JetBlue flight landing at Boston Logan International Airport saw a close call with a Learjet that took off without clearance. 

Last year also had a spate of near misses. In April, a JetBlue and Southwest plane were cleared on a collision path at Washington National before air traffic controllers took the necessary measures to stop the near collision. In May, an American Airlines plane canceled its takeoff at Washington National after it was informed that an aircraft was landing on an intersecting runway.

Last month, Delta and United Airlines planes experienced "a loss of required separation" while heading to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, the FAA said, but both planes were able to land safely. Last week at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, a Japan Airlines flight collided with a Delta Airlines flight on the tarmac slicing into the tail of the plane.

The rising number of near misses coincides with a staffing crisis that has plagued air control centers at airports across the country.

According to data from the union representing air traffic controllers, about 91%, or 285 of 313 U.S. air traffic control facilities, operate below the FAA's recommended staffing levels. Notably, at 73 of these locations, at least a fourth of the workforce is missing — including Austin.

This situation could be further complicated by Elon Musk’s and President Donald Trump's efforts to reduce the government workforce. As a result, at a time when air traffic control towers are struggling with staffing shortages, Trump has encouraged FAA workers to quit and take buyouts.

The email that gave workers the option to be bought out came just a day before the tragic D.C. crash.

Beck Andrew Salgado covers trending topics in the Austin business ecosystem for the American-Statesman. To share additional tips or insights with Salgado, email Bsalgado@gannett.com.