2 Killed in Penn. Neighborhood Plane Crash, Residents Believe Pilot Tried to Ensure 'No One Else Got Hurt'

The fatal crash killed both people on board, but no neighbors reported injuries

A small plane crashed into a residential neighborhood in Pennsylvania on Thursday afternoon, killing both people on board.

The crash took place in Hilltown Township around 5 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration tells PEOPLE in a statement. The plane, a Beechcraft BE35, departed from Doylestown Airport and was traveling to nearby Gunden Airport.

Although the circumstances of the crash are still unknown, the aircraft "struck an unoccupied vehicle" near a local middle school and then "caught on fire," according to an FAA incident report.

The Hilltown Police Department said in a statement that "one house sustained damage from part of the propeller penetrating through a second floor bedroom wall," but that "no persons on the ground were injured."

"Witnesses reported seeing and hearing the plane struggle to remain airborne," authorities continued, noting that "the pilot is being credited with avoiding houses and nearby Pennridge Central Middle School."

Speaking with CBS Philly, one neighbor said they believe the pilot "was trying to come down the street to make a landing so nobody would get hurt."

"He knew he was going down and he did the best he could to make sure no one else got hurt in the process," added fellow neighbor Ashley Lapat.

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Loved ones have identified one of the victims as Brian Filippini to both The Bucks County Courier Times and ABC affiliate WPVI.

Filippini, a husband and father of three, was the owner of the plane involved in the crash, per WPVI.

Neither victim has been identified by authorities, and the second victim has not yet been publicly named.

The Bucks County Coroner's Office told The Bucks County Courier Times that autopsies for both victims are scheduled for Saturday.

According to an NTSB investigator, one of the pilots on board had a private license and was training to receive a commercial license, reported WPVI.

Friday marked investigators' "first full day on scene," an NTSB spokesperson tells PEOPLE in a statement.

"The investigators will continue to document the scene and examine the aircraft," they say. "Part of the investigation will be to request radar data, weather information, air traffic control communication, aircraft maintenance records and the pilot's medical records."