Civil Aviation Institute spokesman Hector Olivo says the plane crashed shortly after taking off today from the airport in the Punta Cana resort area on the eastern tip of the Dominican Republic.
The single-engine Piper PA-32 was headed to the Samana Peninsula off the north coast with a pilot and six passengers.
The plane was apparently attempting to make an emergency landing when it struck the ground in a golf course adjacent to the airport and burst into flames.