Antenor Velazco, a 63-year-old orthopedic surgeon on his way to obtain his pilot license, barely eloped from his plane before it exploded into flames Tuesday afternoon.

35 miles east of Atlanta, the small plane crashed in the Newton County Covington Municipal Airport as its pilot, Velazco, was practicing touch-and-go maneuvers around 3pm. Velazco, the Jonesboro surgeon, lost control of the Cessna 172 Skyhawk as it came back up after dipping to barely touch the runway. The plane burst into flames shortly after he escaped from it. The front of the airplane cabin is completely charred and incinerated in the fire. Only the wings and the tail are visible from aerial view.

Explosion