COUNTYWIDE : Plane Crash-Lands; No One Injured

A single-engine plane crash-landed at John Wayne Airport on Sunday when a wheel gear failed.

Airport spokeswoman Courtney Wiercioch said the airplane, a Piper, landed on Runway 19 Left, the runway used for small aircraft.

The pilot, who officials declined to identify, was the only one aboard, she said.

“There were no injuries, and personnel on the scene say it’s a minor crash,” Wiercioch said. The plane was returned to Martin Aviation, the firm from which it was rented.

“The pilot told people at the scene that his landing gear was down but failed,” she said.

“He put it down nice and straight, kept it on the runway,” Fire Capt. Stephen McHale said.

“He did a good job” landing the plane, McHale said.

Firefighters used a crane to lift the aircraft and return it to Martin, where the landing gear was brought down manually, McHale said. The body of the plane sustained very little damage, he said.

A spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration said that an inspector was investigating the incident.

On Saturday, another single-engine plane, this one a Cessna, crash-landed on the Santa Ana Freeway after taking off from Fullerton Airport.