Being the good sport that he is, John McCain appeared on SNL’s Weekend Update with Seth, on his variations of his “Maverick” skills. Too funny.

Enjoy!

***SCROLL FOR UPDATES***

Breaking hard and fast, said not to be terror-related, but smoke can be seen for 7 miles after a small aircraft or helicopter crashes into an apartment building at 524 E. 72nd Street, near the East River. Story here.

A small aircraft crashed into a high-rise on the Upper East Side, setting off a fire and startling New Yorkers, police said. There were conflicting reports on whether the aircraft was a small plane or a helicopter.
Fire Department spokeswoman Emily Rahimi said an aircraft struck struck the 20th floor of a building on East 72nd Street. Witnesses said the crash caused a loud noise, and burning and falling debris was seen. Flames were seen shooting out of the windows. Video from the scene showed at least three apartments in the high rise fully engulfed in flames.

“There’s huge pieces of debris falling,” said one witness who refused to give her full name. “There’s so much falling now, I’ve got to get away.”

Pandemonium in the streets! Reportedly 1 person trapped, 2 killed… scroll for updates as they come in.

My apologies for the break in the video below, as I was watching a local Fox affiliate then switched but kept recording. This is just the initial video - am recording more.

First video here.

Developing….

***UPDATE****

A witness on the ground confirm it was a small plane that looked as if it were doing aerobatics. Nobody’s ruling in or out any link to terrorism.

Cross-posted at Stop the ACLU. The Anchoress also has good coverage. And as usual, Mary Katherine Ham is all over it with us.

***UPDATE***

Witness says she saw plane parts flying and falling everywhere. Man had to be subdued trying to rush into building. It took several police to subdue him as he was screaming that his pregnant wife was up in the high rise. Please God be with that man and those cops who had to do that for his own safety.

Wizbang’s also got coverage, and I’m sure there will be more to follow. Ed Driscoll’s picking it up, too.

Continuing video here.

AFP: NORAD puts fighter jets in the air.

US authorities scrambled fighter jets above US cities as a precaution after a small plane crashed into an apartment building in New York, a top commander said.
Admiral Tim Keating, commander of the US Northern Command, would not say how many cities were under air cover but insisted there was no sign of terrorism in the accident on Manhattan’s post Upper East Side.

“Fighters, along with early warning systems, they’ve been up there for half an hour, 45 minutes,” Keating told CNN.

“There are no, repeat, no indications that there is anything underfoot beyond this one airplane or helicopter, whatever, light civil (aircraft) that flew into this apartment building in New York City,” he said.

“But … we reserve the right to exercise our capabilities, which is what we’ve done here.”

CBS News: At least 2 died.

The two deaths were confirmed by the city police, and CBS-2 News has learned that there were apparently no other major injuries inside the building.

Large crowds gathered at the crash scene in the tony New York neighborhood, with many people in tears and others trying to reach loved ones by cell phone. Mayor Michael Bloomberg went to the site, where parts of the fuselage were falling to the ground.

Plane belonged to New York Yankees pitcher, Cory Lidle?

Reuters: Not terrorism.

“We have no reason to believe at this point that it is terrorist related, and our level remains the same,” said New York City Police Chief Michael Collins.

And Shephard closes out Studio B with this final video.

***UPDATE***

4:55 PM EST - Confirmed: Plane belonged to NY Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle, and reportedly he was flying it, killed on impact.

From ESPN:

NEW YORK — A small plane piloted by New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle crashed into a 50-story condominium tower Wednesday on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, raining flaming debris onto the sidewalks below and rattling New Yorkers’ nerves five years after the Sept. 11 attack.

Lidle died in the crash.

The twin-engine plane came through a hazy, cloudy sky and hit the 20th floor of The Belaire — a red-brick tower overlooking the East River, about five miles from the World Trade Center — with a loud bang, touching off a raging fire that cast a pillar of black smoke over the city and sent flames shooting from four windows on two adjoining floors.

That brings a total of four deaths confirmed today. Very very sad.

Ace is on this, too.

***UPDATE***

7:34PM EST - Only 2 deaths now attributed to plane crash.

***UPDATE***

Courtesy of Reuters… “I’m Alec Baldwin…don’t you know who I am?”

Apparently Alec Baldwin was trying to convince emergency workers at the scene that he is a most exceptional construction worker, and demanding to be on-scene helping so he can be viewed as benevolent. Yeah, Alec… we know your radio gig didn’t go so well.