Firefighters responded to the crash of a small plane at Whiteman Airport in Pacoima, an accident caused by defective landing gear inside the plane, airport officials said.
Firefighters responded to the crash of a solo Cessna plane shortly after 9 a.m. Tuesday.
According to initial reports of the incident, the pilot and the plane's only passenger landed safely on the runway, but the landing gear did not deploy properly, the Whiteman Airport Coalition said in a statement.
The plane continued beyond the runway area, passed through a perimeter fence and stopped in a parking lot on airport property, according to the coalition.
It is unclear if the plane crashed into any vehicles or anything else in the parking lot.
“The lone passenger/pilot has been released and is receiving medical evaluation,” according to an incident alert from the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Five gallons of fuel leaked from the aircraft, but the leak was contained and there is no active fire.
Authorities said the pilot was injured but did not disclose the extent of his injuries.
“Fortunately, no one else was injured,” the airport coalition's statement said. “Most importantly, the incident occurred entirely on airport grounds and posed no danger to the surrounding neighborhoods or nearby residents.”
“This morning's plane crash at Whiteman Airport reminds us of the definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result,” Los Angeles City Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez, whose district includes Pacoima, said in a statement.
“It is shameful that the county has not taken any meaningful action to protect our community after these repeated accidents that threaten the safety of our community,” the statement said.
Whiteman Airport has been a cause of concern among community activists and residents of surrounding neighborhoods who have called for the facility to close.
The latest incident occurred in April, when community members helped lift a single-engine plane and pull the pilot from the wreckage after it crashed upside down in the parking lot of an auto parts store less than two miles from its departure location, Whiteman Airport.
A series of accidents led the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to consider closing the airport.
In 2022, an emergency single-engine Cessna landed on Metrolink tracks near San Fernando and Osborne streets; Police had to quickly extricate the pilot as a Metrolink train headed toward the wreckage.
That April, a pilot died after a Cessna crashed alongside Highway 210 in Sylmar after taking off from Whiteman Airport.
Previously, in November 2020, a Cessna crashed in a residential area near the airport runway, killing a Civil Air Patrol pilot.
Earlier this year, federal aviation officials warned the county that the land purchased with federal funds carried an obligation that included operating the property as an airport unless the FAA formally authorized it.
“I will continue to closely monitor this situation and continue to fight for accountability and the safety of Pacoima residents,” Rodriguez's statement read.
Editors Rubén Vives and Clara Harter contributed to this report.
