The pilot of a banner plane was rescued after a plane crashed into the ocean off the coast of Huntington Beach, officials said Friday.
The Huntington Beach Fire Department responded to the crash around 1:30 p.m. to assist California State Parks with the downed aircraft south of Beach Boulevard, officials said on Twitter.
The pilot, who was the only person aboard, was rescued and no serious injuries were reported. Video from the scene showed the man in the back of a lifeguard truck sitting upright while wearing a neck brace.
Video from a beachgoer posted to Twitter shows the plane going down into the water.
An image of the aftermath shared to Twitter showed several people looking out into the ocean, and debris strewn about the water.
Aerial video from Sky5 later showed the plane as being largely intact while rescuers surrounded it. Onlookers stood by to watch the aftermath.
Two cousins visiting from Texas saw the plane go down before it landed about 30 yards from where they were standing.
“The plane was coming in, we thought it was just going low for a second to kind of advertise a little better, but it actually ended up coming in the water,” Brody Chism told KTLA.
“I thought it was just one the planes that could float above water, but I started looking at it and realized it wasn’t one of those type of planes,” Brad Kisling said. “When it crashed, the banner actually started to go toward our direction, so we decided to get out of the water before it hit us.”
The plane was described by the Federal Aviation Administration as a single-engine Piper Cub. The registered owner is based out of Hollywood, Florida, records show.
The plane was towed away around 3 p.m. and it appeared to have been pulling a banner.
It is unclear what led up to the crash, and the FAA will investigate.
