THE scene of Reno’s air race crash that killed nine people reveals the violence of the plane’s missile-like impact — a crater in the tarmac roughly 3 feet deep and 8 feet across with debris spread out over more than an acre.

The death toll from an air race crash in Reno, Nevada, rose to nine as investigators said the 1940s plane appeared to lose a piece of its tail before slamming into a crowded tarmac.

A vintage Second World War-era fighter plane has plunged into the grandstands during a popular annual US air show, killing at least three people and injuring more than 50 spectators.