The Ocala Fire Rescue released additional details about a plane that crashed onto an Ocala roadway this week, saying another pilot and local motorist helped find the downed aircraft and that the pilot required extrication.
On Wednesday, May 7, OFR units were dispatched to reports of an aircraft emergency and possible plane crash near the Ocala International Airport at around 9:30 p.m.
With the assistance of a third-party pilot who was flying overhead and communicating with firefighters, as well as a passerby who used his vehicle lights to illuminate the crash site, crews were able to locate the Cessna 182A relatively quickly.
The small plane was situated approximately 20 feet from the southbound lanes of SW 67th Avenue Road, according to OFR.
Upon arrival, crews found that the aircraft was upright and had its nose to the ground. At the time, the pilot was still trapped inside the plane.
Crews assessed and stabilized the patient before they began extricating him from the aircraft. The plane was secured to prevent any movement and the pilot was safely removed after crews cut the backrest of his seat.
It took emergency personnel approximately six minutes to extract the pilot, who was trauma alerted to a local hospital afterwards.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration’s aviation safety information analysis and sharing report (ASIAS), the pilot allegedly crashed on his approach into the Ocala International Airport.
The FAA still continues to investigate the incident.