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Air Force jet crashes into Indianapolis hotel, killing 10 in 1987

Ramada Inn jet crash

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — For this week’s “WISHstory,” part of the station’s 70th anniversary celebration, we look back on the Oct. 20, 1987, crash of a malfunctioning Air Force A-7D Corsair II fighter jet into the Ramada Inn near the Indianapolis International Airport.

Photographers recall the events of the day.

Nine people on the ground in the hotel died in the fiery crash, and a 10th person died a few days later. The Air Force pilot was injured after he ejected from the plane and fell to the ground in a parking lot a few blocks from the hotel.

This story is from a script aired on WISH-TV.

Original broadcasts on WISH-TV YouTube page