eight killed by a plane hitting a building

The aircraft, a Pilatus PC-12 which left Milan Linate airport for Olbia, Sardinia, crashed five minutes after takeoff, ANSV added, according to AFP news agency.

The aircraft caught fire after colliding with an empty building under renovation.

According to Il Corriere della Sera and the Italian agency AGI, the pilot was the Romanian billionaire Dan Petrescu, 68, who died, as well as the seven companions, including a child.

Among the passengers were the billionaire’s wife, 65, also of French nationality, her son Dan Stefano, 30, and a child.

Dan Petrescu, one of the richest men in Romania, also of German nationality according to Il Corriere, ran a large construction group and owned hypermarkets and shopping centers.

“The glass in my windows shook,” said Italian news agency AGI Giuseppe, a 26-year-old who lives near the crash site.

“I opened the window and, like in the movies, I saw a big column of smoke rising, and I called for help,” he added.

The ANSV has opened an investigation.