CORONA (CNS) - The pilot of a single-engine airplane successfully landed in a field adjacent to Prado Dam after experiencing engine trouble Thursday while flying near Corona Municipal Airport.
The forced landing occurred about 4:15 p.m. north of the intersection of Auto Center Drive and Railroad Street, according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department and the Federal Aviation Administration.
Officials said the pilot of a four-seat Cessna 180 Skywagon, tail No. N2873A, reported difficulties with the 67-year-old plane's powerplant and elected to set the aircraft down in a flat space near Prado Dam, apparently unable to coax the Cessna to the runway at the airport less than a mile away.
[iframe https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m18!1m12!1m3!1d2488.313798584524!2d-117.64388722571825!3d33.889609326302754!2m3!1f0!2f0!3f0!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!3m3!1m2!1s0x80dcc92ae349ea27%3A0x4763b97198753947!2sPrado%20Dam%2C%20Corona%2C%20CA%2092880!5e1!3m2!1sen!2sus!4v1685671177819!5m2!1sen!2sus allowfullscreen="" height="450" loading="lazy" referrerpolicy="no-referrer-when-downgrade" style="border:0" width="600"]It was unclear whether he had just departed the airfield or was making turns in the traffic pattern at the time.
The off-airport landing was uneventful. Corona Fire Department personnel and sheriff's deputies reached the location -- which is in an unincorporated area bordering Corona -- within a few minutes.
"Upon arrival, deputies located two uninjured occupants," sheriff's spokeswoman Deirdre Vickers said. "There were no reports of property damage."
First responders cleared the area shortly before 6 p.m.
The FAA is investigating the unanticipated landing.
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