Canadians killed in Nashville plane crash identified as Ontario couple and 3 children

Five Canadians who died when a small plane crashed in Nashville on Monday have been identified as a couple and their three children from King Township, north of Toronto, the township's mayor says.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Steve Pellegrini said the township is mourning the loss of Rimma Dotsenko, her husband Victor and their three children.

"This is a heartbreaking and devastating loss for our tight-knit community," he said.

Pellegrini extended condolences to family and friends of the Dotsenko family and thanked emergency officials for their response.

U.S. authorities, meanwhile, continue to investigate the crash in Tennessee that occurred when a single-engine plane crashed alongside a highway west of downtown Nashville, killing all five people aboard.

Investigator Aaron McCarter of the National Transportation Safety Board said the flight originated in Ontario and confirmed that three of the passengers were children.

In a recording of radio transmissions, the pilot tells air traffic controllers that his engine has shut down, he has overflown John C. Tune Airport and has circled around in an attempt to land.

A runway is cleared at the airport, but the pilot says the plane has already descended to 487 metres and that he's too far away and isn't going to make it.

Global Affairs Canada said it is aware of reports of the deaths of five Canadians in Tennessee but would not disclose any details due to privacy considerations.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada said it has assigned a representative to the U.S.-led investigation.

Authorities in Nashville did not have any updates Wednesday regarding the identities of the people on the plane.

A Metropolitan Nashville Police Department spokesperson told CBC News on Wednesday afternoon that the medical examiner's office was still working to formally identify the victims and notify relatives.

The plane was based at the Brampton Flight Centre, which is owned and operated by the Brampton Flying Club, said its general manager, Allan Paige. He could not say whether the plane took off from there, however, as the airport is uncontrolled and does not have flight records.

"It's a terrible, terrible tragedy. We're all deeply affected by it," fellow pilot Tony Starcevic told CBC News outside the Brampton facility.