A pilot successfully conducted an emergency landing with a single-engine plane the morning of Monday, April 1, at the 2700 block of Orange Avenue after his aircraft experienced engine trouble, according to the Signal Hill Police Department’s (SHPD) police chief.
SHPD Police Chief Christopher Nunley said there were no injuries or damage to nearby vehicles or power lines, and the pilot, whose age, experience and identity has not been identified, was the sole occupant inside the plane.
At the scene that morning were investigators with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and officials with the Long Beach Fire Department (LBFD) and Los Angeles County Fire Department. Near Willow Springs Park was the plane in question: a Piper Cub, single-engine aircraft.
According to initial reports from the LBFD and SHPD, the pilot was performing touch-and-go procedures with his aircraft around Long Beach Airport– typically when a pilot lands on a runway and takes off again without coming to a full stop in multiple successions.
As he flew above the 405 Freeway above Orange Avenue, the pilot began experiencing engine trouble. According to Nunley, the pilot was planning to conduct an emergency landing on the freeway, but there were too many vehicles. Instead, he landed on Orange Avenue, which was clear of vehicles and pedestrians at the time.
The plane landed safely at about 10:30am, according to the LBFD. The plane was then transported to Long Beach Airport.
“He didn’t come in contact with any vehicles or any other people,” Nunley told reporters that morning, as the plane was still being investigated behind him. “It was a safe landing. Miraculously, he made it underneath the power lines as he came through here and came to a stop.”
The pilot declined to comment, according to Tony Imbrenda, captain with the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
