Plane Crash-Lands In Sonoma County Vineyard

WINDSOR, CA — A pilot did a crash-landing Saturday in a Sonoma wine country vineyard but came away unscathed, according to reports from the scene.

The single-engine Cessna 172 plane landed in a vineyard north of the Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport around 3:15 p.m. Saturday after the pilot reported engine issues, a spokesperson with the Federal Aviation Administration told Patch. Only the pilot was on board, the FAA said.

The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office dispatched a helicopter crew to the possible plane crash reported near the Windsor Golf Course.

The Cessna pilot had already notified the Santa Rosa Airport Tower of the engine failure and was going to try to make it to the golf course, the sheriff's office said. Air traffic controllers tried to radio the pilot again but they could no longer reach the Cessna.

A helicopter belonging to Helico was in the area on a training flight and its crew members offered to help look for the downed aircraft.

Just as the sheriff's helicopter crew, Henry-One, was airborne, the Helico pilot found the crash site and radioed the plane's whereabouts to Henry-One.

As Henry-One headed toward the plane's location in the 9000 block of Eastside Road in Windsor, the pilot took to the radio to let the helicopter crew know everything was OK.

As soon as Henry-One landed nearby, the flight officer made contact with the pilot.

The Sonoma County Fire District also responded. The pilot did not suffer injuries but was medically evaluated as a precaution, the sheriff's office said.

Deputies contacted the National Transportation Board, which, along with the FAA will investigate the incident.

The plane is a 1967 model and has been registered to Paho Olive with a Sebastopol address since 2011, according to the FAA registry.