Tragedy Strikes in Maine as Prominent Texas Family's Attorney Wife Dies in Deadly Plane Crash
A private jet carrying six people, including a prominent attorney from a top-tier law firm in Texas, crashed and exploded at a Maine airport over the weekend, killing everyone on board. Tara Arnold, 46, wife of elite lawyer Kurt Arnold, was among those who lost their lives in the devastating accident.
Arnold, who lived with her two kids and husband in a luxurious Houston mansion, was en route to Paris when the plane, registered to her husband's personal-injury firm, Arnold & Itkin Law, went down on Sunday evening. The victims' identities remain unknown, but authorities have confirmed that Arnold was traveling with five other individuals.
The aircraft, a twin-engine Bombardier Challenger 600, took off from Bangor International Airport at around 7:45 p.m., just hours after it had landed for refueling. Witnesses reported hearing a voice on the radio saying "Let there be light" before the plane crashed back into the runway and exploded.
Airport officials stated that all traffic was stopped, and emergency crews were immediately deployed to the scene. A nearby air-traffic controller described the scene as "chaotic," with passengers upside down in the aircraft.
The crash occurred during a severe winter storm, Winter Storm Fern, which battered Maine and much of the East Coast. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is expected to investigate the cause of the accident, which may be linked to wind contamination or freezing precipitation on the plane's wings.
Aviation expert Jeff Guzzetti pointed out that takeoff troubles have been a concern with this aircraft type during cold-weather conditions. "Given the weather conditions at the time and the history of wind contamination with this particular aircraft, I'm sure that's something the NTSB is going to look into immediately," he said.
The accident has sent shockwaves through Texas' elite social circle, where Arnold was known for her philanthropic efforts and successful career. Her husband, Kurt Arnold, co-founded the Arnold & Itkin Law Firm with Jason Itkin, and their wives made significant donations to Republican causes and the University of Texas.
A private jet carrying six people, including a prominent attorney from a top-tier law firm in Texas, crashed and exploded at a Maine airport over the weekend, killing everyone on board. Tara Arnold, 46, wife of elite lawyer Kurt Arnold, was among those who lost their lives in the devastating accident.
Arnold, who lived with her two kids and husband in a luxurious Houston mansion, was en route to Paris when the plane, registered to her husband's personal-injury firm, Arnold & Itkin Law, went down on Sunday evening. The victims' identities remain unknown, but authorities have confirmed that Arnold was traveling with five other individuals.
The aircraft, a twin-engine Bombardier Challenger 600, took off from Bangor International Airport at around 7:45 p.m., just hours after it had landed for refueling. Witnesses reported hearing a voice on the radio saying "Let there be light" before the plane crashed back into the runway and exploded.
Airport officials stated that all traffic was stopped, and emergency crews were immediately deployed to the scene. A nearby air-traffic controller described the scene as "chaotic," with passengers upside down in the aircraft.
The crash occurred during a severe winter storm, Winter Storm Fern, which battered Maine and much of the East Coast. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is expected to investigate the cause of the accident, which may be linked to wind contamination or freezing precipitation on the plane's wings.
Aviation expert Jeff Guzzetti pointed out that takeoff troubles have been a concern with this aircraft type during cold-weather conditions. "Given the weather conditions at the time and the history of wind contamination with this particular aircraft, I'm sure that's something the NTSB is going to look into immediately," he said.
The accident has sent shockwaves through Texas' elite social circle, where Arnold was known for her philanthropic efforts and successful career. Her husband, Kurt Arnold, co-founded the Arnold & Itkin Law Firm with Jason Itkin, and their wives made significant donations to Republican causes and the University of Texas.
just can't believe another tragic accident... you'd think that private jets would have better safety record by now 
it's so sad that Tara Arnold was on her way to Paris, enjoying some well-deserved time off with her family, when this happened... and the fact that there are no survivors is just heartbreaking 
the NTSB has a tough job ahead of them, but I hope they can get to the bottom of what went wrong... maybe some changes can be made to prevent similar accidents in the future 
just heard about this awful plane crash in Maine... Tara Arnold was such a sweetheart, always supporting her family's charity work 
anyway, so now we gotta think what could've caused that accident? seems like bad weather might've played a role 
but aviation experts say it's more complicated than that... wind contamination and freezing temps on the wings... 
still, my heart goes out to Kurt Arnold and his two kids 
. The NTSB is gonna investigate and probably find out that the pilot made some rookie mistake or something. This whole thing just reeks of bad luck and poor planning 
Oh great, just what we need, another celebrity death to make my Tuesday better 
. I mean, who needs a stable personal life when you can fly on a private jet and crash into a runway? It's not like Tara Arnold was trying to escape her husband or anything (just kidding, we all know how that usually ends). The fact that the plane was taking off during a severe winter storm is just icing on the cake 
. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the wing's design or maintenance 
. Just another day in paradise.
do you think that "Let there be light" thing is just a weird radio broadcast anomaly or something more? 
- some of which were due to bad weather conditions just like in this case. Anyway, so the NTSB is looking into wind contamination and freezing precipitation on the wings... did you know that in 2018 there were over 1,000 reported aircraft incidents involving icing conditions? 
Here's a chart showing the number of aviation accidents by country for 2020 
[link to chart]
️. So, Tara Arnold was traveling with five other people on that private jet... do you think any of them had a good insurance policy? 
The Arnold & Itkin Law Firm must've been super busy to have a plane service like this 
.
[link to FAA data].
this is so sad... poor Tara 
she was like a pillar in her community, always helping out 
and supporting great causes 
her family must be devastated 
. it's just terrible that it had to end like this... plane crashes are crazy enough already, but with all these variables involved, it's gonna take some time to figure out what went wrong 
. hopefully the NTSB gets to the bottom of it and we can learn from this 
what a tragedy 
i cant even imagine losing ur wife like that and having 2 little ones who dont even know ur smiling face anymore 
it was just an ordinary sunday evening but in one sec everything changes 
this is so sad for kurt arnold and his family life will never be the same 
and all those other people on that flight, just innocent victims of bad luck or something? 
.
.
But seriously, this is just heartbreaking. I'm guessing it's going to be super hard for her kids and hubby to cope with this loss. And poor plane passengers... it's just awful that they didn't even get a chance to enjoy their flight. 
. I mean, I've heard of the Arnold & Itkin Law Firm before, but never thought they'd lose someone as beautiful as Tara 
. And honestly, who needs 7:45 pm takeoff time when there's a severe winter storm going on? It just seems so reckless... I mean, you'd think Kurt Arnold would've known better than that.