Pilot Escapes Injury In Plane Crash At Petaluma Airport

PETALUMA, CA — A pilot crash-landed Sunday into a hangar at the Petaluma Municipal Airport but did not suffer any injuries, authorities said.

Emergency personnel with the Petaluma Fire Department and Rancho Adobe Fire were dispatched around 6:45 p.m. Sunday to a report of an airplane into a hangar and were on scene within minutes, Petaluma FD Battalion Chief Mike Medeiros said.

The fire department found that a small plane crashed and was wedged in the side of a metal hangar, Medeiros said. The pilot, who was the only person inside the plane, and managed to free himself from the wreckage.

The single-engine Cessna 182H Skylane is registered out of Fairfax in Marin County.

Crews worked to stop gasoline that was leaking from the plane.

The airport manager also responded and stated the National Transportation Safety Board, or NTSB, and the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, were notified.

"An investigation into the incident, and removal of the aircraft, are pending and will be completed as soon as possible," Medeiros said.

The owners of the damaged hangar were on hand and said there was no aircraft inside the hangar at the time of the crash.

There was not an immediate damage estimate, as that was dependent upon completion of the investigation and removal of the aircraft, Medeiros said.