Deadly month in aviation: Look back at 8 plane crashes across Florida in February

February proved to be a deadly month of aviation in Florida.

From crash landings to a failed attempted theft, there seemingly was a new incident taking over headlines and our push notifications every week. At least five people died in Florida in reported February plane crashes.

It's worth noting the previous month was no stranger to fatal aircraft crashes, with a single-engine Cessna 172N Skyhawk crashing into the Everglades and killing two men on Jan. 23.

Here's a look back at eight of the plane crashes that occurred over February's 29 days in 2024.

Plane goes down in Clearwater mobile home park, 3 killed

Starting off on Feb. 1, three people were confirmed killed after a plane crashed into a mobile home park in Clearwater.

The pilot reported an engine failure prior to the fiery crash, which was about three miles from the nearest runway.

The single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza V35 crashed about an hour after taking off from Vero Beach Municipal Airport.

The plane was found in one of the homes, according to Clearwater Fire Chief Scott Ehlers. Four mobile homes caught fire in the Bayside Waters mobile home park after the crash.

The Federal Aviation Administration's preliminary incident report said fatalities included the pilot and two people on the ground. The pilot was the only person on board the aircraft, the FAA said.

Officials identified the victims as 86-year-old Martha Parry, a resident of one of the mobile homes destroyed in the crash; 54-year-old Mary Ellen Pender, of Treasure Island, who was visiting Parry; and pilot Jemin Patel, 54, of Melbourne Beach.

Plane crashes onto I-75 in Fort Myers, 2 killed

On Feb. 9, a Bombardier Challenger 600 jet that crashed on southbound Interstate 75, in Naples, killing the two pilots. The Collier County Sheriff's Office identified the pilots as Edward Daniel Murphy, 50, of Oakland Park, and Ian Fredrick Hoffman, 65, of Pompano Beach.

The three other passengers survived but were injured. The plane also hit an SUV and a truck; the drivers and passengers in those vehicles survived.

According to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board, while the cause of the crash is still yet to be determined, investigators are taking special care in examining the fuel and engines.

Taking off from Ohio State University's airport at 12:30 p.m. Friday, it was on its way to the Naples Airport. It was scheduled for a subsequent departure to Fort Lauderdale. The Naples Daily News detailed how six miles out of its destination, the jet lit up with various warning signals — they were out of oil in both engines.

More: NTSB report details last seconds before Bombardier jet crashed on I-75 in Naples, Florida

After radioing to air traffic control that they needed to make an emergency landing, they were told they were clear to land.

“We are cleared to land but we are not going to make the runway… ah… we have lost both engines,” the crew replied.

Pilot walks away from plane crash near DeLand

A Cessna 172 lost power and crashed into the woods off Marsh Road in Lake George State Forest northwest of DeLand on Feb. 16, according to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.

The pilot was "alert and conscious and able to walk away from the aircraft reporting minor injuries," the Sheriff's Office reported. The plane crashed at around 1:49 a.m. Friday off Marsh Road in the area of Lake George State Forest.

According to Daytona Beach News Journal reports, the pilot called 911 while still sitting in the crashed airplane in the woods.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA were been notified.

Seaplane crashes near Port of Miami, no injuries

On Feb. 23, seaplane made an emergency landing near the Port of Miami  just after 1:30 p.m.

According to USA TODAY, the plane, a single-engine Cessna with tail number N85WL, departed from Palm Beach International Airport just after 1 p.m. and was scheduled to land in the PortMiami waterway.

Despite landing on its side, all seven passengers were rescued and brought to safety. No injuries were reported.

Small plane makes emergency crash landing on north Cape Coral

Just two weeks following the I-75 crash, a small plane made an emergency landing on a Cape Coral residential road on the morning of Feb. 24.

After initially reporting minor injuries to the pilot on board, the Cape Coral Fire Department updated that the pilot, whom the department described as "experienced" in aviation, was not injured.

The News-Press reported the single-engine aircraft had flown out of Pine Shadows Airport in North Fort Myers. The pilot reported a possible engine failure, said the FAA, which is investigating what happened.

Man allegedly attempts to steal plane, crashes it into fence

Southwest Florida adds another crash to its growing list.

This time it was due to a Fort Myers man allegedly entering someone else's plane and attempting to fly it out of Page Field, crashing it into the airport's perimeter fence.

The News-Press reported that on Feb. 26, two maintenance personnel at Page Field, 5200 Captain Channing Page Drive, observed an aircraft in the grass, with the left wing broken around 5:30 a.m.. The airplane had struck a light pole.

Authorities said the single door to the aircraft was left open, but no one was inside, according to the incident report. The owner, identified as Peter Schipma, 58, of Illinois, told authorities he didn't give anyone permission to use the airplane.

Bruce Plummer, 43, of Fort Myers, was identified by surveillance video and arrested. He was charged Tuesday with two counts of armed burglary; one count of larceny; and two counts of possessing a bulletproof vest during certain offenses. Jail records Wednesday indicated he was additionally charged with a third count of possessing a bulletproof vest during certain offenses and one count of trespassing.

Sanford plane 'landed short,' crashed into another plane

A training plane "landed short" and crashed into a parked one at Orlando Sanford International Airport on Feb. 28, according to airport officials.

"Around 6:30 this evening, we had an incident between two single-engine small aircraft on our runway," airport spokesperson Lauren Rowe told reporters at a press conference.

What does 'landing short' mean? Plane crash in Sanford: Training plane crashes into parked plane, here’s what we know

"The good news is, no one was seriously hurt," Rowe said.

A USA TODAY Network-Florida report detailed one person was taken to the hospital as a precaution. The other two people on the plane were unharmed.

Another plane in Southwest Florida sees tricky landing, no one injured

Ending February's fill for plane crash, Southwest Florida sees its fourth and final aircraft incident.

On Feb. 28, Victoria Moreland, spokesperson for the Lee County Port Authority, said a private aircraft had a collapsed landing gear upon touchdown at Page Field.

Moreland told the News-Press no one was injured.

Contributing reporting: Tomas Rodriguez and Kate Cimini, Fort Myers News-Press and C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK Florida

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Florida plane crashes in February: Here's what happened in 8 of them