A VERY close call for this pilot in Pacoima CA

[India Four Two]

A Cessna 172H had an engine failure after takeoff from Whiteman Airport and ended up on railway tracks. Great work by LAPD officers getting the pilot out before the train arrived.

You Tube

Another view of the really close call:

https://abc7.com/pacoima-plane-down-...aved/11447057/


He almost made it:

[mickjoebill]

Extraordinary rescue of pilot by police seconds before train hits plane

Light plane crashes onto a railway crossing, in California, Twitter has police bodycam footage of the rescue of pilot just 5 seconds before a train ploughs into the wreckage.

Police bodycam

Twitter

bystander ducks wreckage

You Tube

[Magnetomick]

Close

Cool heads there by LAPD, that was close.

[hunbet]

It was reported he did an emergency landing on the tracks. Airplane was complete except for the damage caused when the nose gear eventually touched down on the crossties.

Should make for an interesting NTSB investigation. Do they have to call in railroad experts and aircraft experts ?

[Less Hair]

Very brave policemen.

[DaveReidUK]

Kudos to the first responders.

One wonders, though, whether there had been any attempt (presumably unsuccessful) to pull the Cessna, which appeared to be still on its mainwheels, out of the path of the train before extricating the pilot.

While the train obviously wasn't in any danger from hitting the aircraft, the bystanders certainly were:

Train Crashes into Plane - Whiteman Airport Pacoima, California [WARNING: GRAPHIC FOOTAGE] - YouTube

[mickjoebill]

6 seconds before the train hit, he was still behind the control column...

Mjb

[Alan Baker]

Looks like a great place for an airport, any kind of problem results in ploughing into buildings or a busy rail line.

[FUMR]

Very well done those LAPD officers. That took a great deal of courage and they are true heroes. I trust that they will get the recognition they fully deserve!

[340drvr]

Originally Posted by Alan Baker

Looks like a great place for an airport, any kind of problem results in ploughing into buildings or a busy rail line.

Totally valid point, But, Whiteman is certainly not the only airport, small GA or airline, to be situated like that. The LA area, like many other spots around the world, has many of those "small" GA-only aerodromes that were originally built outside the city limits, are now surrounded by urban sprawl and congestion.

[TWT]

Bravo LAPD !

[OPENDOOR]

Originally Posted by FUMR

Very well done those LAPD officers. That took a great deal of courage and they are true heroes. I trust that they will get the recognition they fully deserve!

Possibly the time spent stringing yellow tape might have been better employed moving the aircraft out of the path of the train?

[muppetdodger]

Originally Posted by OPENDOOR

Possibly the time spent stringing yellow tape might have been better employed moving the aircraft out of the path of the train?

I was thinking that, the fact that the tape is up, all the rescue services are parked up on the other side of the crossing and people are stood videoing, why on earth didn't someone get the train stopped up the line. Seems a bit odd to me tbh. You'd think as soon as the plane crashes the tower and or police would tell the railroad company to stop all trains.

[NutLoose]

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/worl...e-b975773.html

Bodycam there

[Pilot DAR]

why on earth didn't someone get the train stopped up the line. Seems a bit odd to me tbh. You'd think as soon as the plane crashes the tower and or police would tell the railroad company to stop all trains.

'Depends of course, on how close the train is! That said, in my capacity as a fire fighter in Canada, I've had to stop a few trains over the years for interference on the tracks. I was instructed by a rail company official that short circuiting the rails to each other near the site of the obstruction could alert the rail dispatcher as to some kind of problem - again, depending if there's a train on that section of track or not. I did it a couple of times with an aluminum step ladder off the truck, across the rails, the highway crossing arms lowered, and no trains came, so it did something that the rail company knew about!

[FakePilot]

I was going to say this. Also a good survival tip if you are lost in wilderness and find a railroad track.

[FUMR]

I would assume that with the number of officers on scene there could only be a limited number who could physically attempt to free the pilot. Others may have busied themselves securing the scene. It wouldn't have taken that long to put that tape up. Again, others may have been in the process of contacting the rail authorities to stop all trains. For sure that train was travelling at considerable speed. No doubt the facts will eventually emerge but I'd like to believe that pilot extraction had begun whilst others put the tape up.

[Clay_T]

Originally Posted by muppetdodger

I was thinking that, the fact that the tape is up, all the rescue services are parked up on the other side of the crossing and people are stood videoing, why on earth didn't someone get the train stopped up the line. Seems a bit odd to me tbh. You'd think as soon as the plane crashes the tower and or police would tell the railroad company to stop all trains.

There are (supposed to be) signs posted at each crossing with an emergency phone number to call in case the crossing is obstructed.



I would imagine police officers/first responders have it on speed dial.

[Spooky 2]

That airport has been there for at least the last 60+ years. It was just an uncontrolled dirt strip initially with another small uncontrolled airport very close by. (San Fernando). More than one mid air over the years.

[nevillestyke]

Unisex

Originally Posted by Less Hair

Very brave policemen.

And policewoman.