Long Beach, United States— The engine sputtered over a soccer game. On Tuesday afternoon a single-engine Cessna lost power after takeoff from Long Beach Airport and looked for any flat surface. The pilot picked a crowded park. Two people were hurt.
The Long Beach Post said the crash landing happened at 4:12 p.m. at El Dorado Park, where youth teams were practicing. Witnesses heard popping, then saw the plane gliding low with its propeller stopped. It clipped a tree, hit grass, and skidded 100 meters.
A pedestrian walking a dog was struck by the wing. The pilot and one passenger suffered injuries inside the cockpit. Park rangers reached them first. Firefighters cut the fuel line to stop a leak. No fire. That was luck.
"I was on the sideline and saw it coming straight at the kids," a coach said. "We yelled to run. It missed the goal by maybe 20 feet." His team scattered across the field. Cleats and water bottles lay everywhere.
The LAPD and Federal Aviation Administration investigators cordoned off the wreck. The aircraft is registered to a flight school based at Long Beach. Flight logs show it had returned from a maintenance check earlier that day. Investigators will review that.
Long Beach Airport sits surrounded by dense neighborhoods and parks. Pilots call El Dorado their emergency field when they cannot make the runway. It has happened four times in ten years. The city has debated warning sirens for parks. Nothing was installed.
The injured pedestrian was taken to Long Beach Memorial with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. The pilot remains hospitalized. The FAA said a preliminary report will take 10 days.
The park's grass shows a long black scar where the plane slid. The wing tip is still in the dirt.
Tonight the aircraft sits tarped on the field. Kids are home. Investigators work under floodlights.
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