A DAD has been killed after his plane crashed and erupted into a fireball just feet from houses.

Jason McKenzie, 45, has been hailed a hero after using his piloting skills to avoid hurting anyone else as his jet plunged to the ground in Georgia.

Jason McKenzie, pictured with his wife and son, was killed in a plane crashCredit: Facebook

The aircraft went up in flames close to housesCredit: WRDW-TV/WAGT-TV

He was returning to an airfield when his plane smashed into a fiery wreckage in a wealthy Augusta neighbourhood on Thursday morning.

Shocking pictures show his aircraft reduced to a raging inferno just outside two mansions.

Emergency workers believe McKenzie, an associate director of philanthropy at Augusta University, used his skills as a pilot to ensure no one else was killed or injured.

Neighbour Lisa Lewis told WRDW: “I think it was a miracle.

“I think the Lord protected everyone else.

“We hear planes all the times because we live close to Daniel Field, but this time it was way louder than normal.

“It got louder and louder and it just sounded like it was right outside the window.

“A few seconds later, you kind of heard some sort of rustling kind of crash and then a loud banging pop sound.

“The Lord is in control of all things. It could have been so much worse.”

McKenzie had taken off from Daniel Field and was heading towards New Haven, Connecticut, when his Beechcraft Bonanza A36 went down.

The single-engine jet was just half a mile from the airport when it crashed on Hillcrest Avenue between two homes.

As it plunged, it clipped a tree – which ripped off the left wingtip.

National Transportation Safety Board investigator Ralph Hicks said: “It’s very fortunate that this airplane didn’t hit a house.”

No one else was on board the plane when it plummeted to the street.

Augusta Fire Chief Antonio Burden said emergency crews were able to stop the fire spreading to nearby homes on the leafy street.

He said: “We are lucky and can only credit the pilot for that situation – for not involving another structure.”

Friend Will Dyer praised McKenzie as a “devoted husband, father and son”.

He told WRDW: “He loved his community, his work, and his church. But most of all, I know that Jason loved Jesus.

“He was a faithful and committed follower of Christ. His faith was the guiding principle in his life and I trust that his faith is what led him into eternity.

“My life is better because Jason played a role in it.”

Augusta University, where Jason worked since 2020, said in a tribute: “His passion for the university and our athletics programmes was unsurpassed.

“We are keeping Jason’s family, friends, colleagues in our thoughts and prayers.”

The dad was the only one killed in the crashCredit: WJBF

McKenzie has been described as a ‘devoted husband’ in tributesCredit: Facebook