A P-51 Mustang has crashed into the crowd during the Reno Air Races in Nevada killing at least three people and injuring up to 75.

The vintage World War II aircraft - a P-51D type Mustang registered as N79111 - was piloted by 74-year old veteran air race pilot Jimmy Leeward who was killed in the crash.

Amateur video footage captured by the crowd shows the aircraft diving steeply down into the crowd from a low altitude.

Other eyewitness accounts seem to indicate the pilot lost control while performing a rolling maneuver at around 100ft.

Reno Air Races crash

Reno Air Races crash

Images: PA©

The Federal Aviation Administration suspended the Races following the incident while emergency services attended the scene.

They have begun an investigation into the incident alongside the National Transportation Safety Board, confirming that FAA inspectors had been observing the race at the time of the crash.

The FAA also confirmed there had been "multiple spectator fatalities" and many other critical injuries among the spectators, but so far have not confirmed the number of those involved.

Source: FlightGlobal.com