Airplane Crash-Lands on Sand in Newport Beach; No One Hurt

A single-engine plane belly-landed on the sand in Newport Beach on Friday. There were no injuries.

The Beechcraft Bonanza went down about 5:30 p.m. near 58th Street and Seashore Drive on a nearly empty beach, police and fire officials said.

The pilot, identified as Bill Bond, 65, of Del Mar, managed to land on the sand after the plane’s fuel pump apparently quit, Newport Beach Police Sgt. Ken Cowell said.

The plane’s propeller was bent slightly, but no other damage was reported, Cowell said. Two fire engines, a fire truck company and a paramedic unit rushed to the scene but were not needed.

Newport Beach Fire Capt. George Pearce said the pilot landed without his landing gear. “It was a great landing,� he added.

Pearce said the aircraft landed on an area of the beach that is crowded at that time of the day in warmer months. The crash landing drew a large crowd.

Pearce said he was concerned that the plane might float out to sea because it landed at the high tide line as the tide was still rising.

The Federal Aviation Administration was called to supervise removal of the craft before it could be swept away, Pearce said.

Bond was flying from Long Beach to Del Mar.