Small Plane Crashes on Interstate 405 in Southern California, Explodes into Fireball
Both occupants were transported to a nearby trauma center.
Air travel is the safest form of transportation, but accidents are bound to happen some time. Unfortunately that was the case for a couple in their 60's this morning when their Cessna 310 twin-engine plane didn't make it to the runway at John Wayne Airport. The small airplane took off from John Wayne Airport shortly before 9:30am and the pilot declared an emergency landing almost immediately after takeoff. As seen in a twitter video below, the plane came to a flaming crash when it landed on its fuel take, causing it to rupture.
Miraculously, the couple were pulled from the wreckage by an off-duty Avalon, CA firefighter. According to Orange County Fire Authority Captain Larry Kurtz, both victims were taken to a nearby trauma center for treatment.
Crash landing onto a highway is not uncommon as it is the closest thing to a runway a pilot can get without actually using a runway. Unfortunately, there are usually a lot of obstacles that can rupture a the fuel tank causing a streak of flames across the highway. At this time, the need for an emergency landing is unclear but we are sure more information will unfold after the FAA investigation.