Pilot Was Attempting To Land At French Valley, CA, Airport

The pilot of a Piper PA-28-180 Cherokee apparently was unable to correct for a crosswind while landing at French Valley, CA, Airport (F70) on Friday afternoon. The pilot reportedly lost control of his airplane, struck an airplane that was taxiing for takeoff from the airport, and then slid across the tarmac, damaging seven others along the way.

The pilot was reportedly not injured. His passenger, a woman, was taken to a local hospital, according to a news release from the Riverside County (CA) fire department. Her injuries were said to be minor.

It was reportedly a very gusty day on Friday. One witness, a server at the airport restaurant, told the southern California newspaper The Press Enterprise that she saw the airplane come in, go down, and hit the other aircraft. It stopped when it went nose-first into an plane parked on the ramp, but not before several aircraft were damaged.

FAA spokesman Ian Gregor told the Temecula Patch that the pilot of the Cherokee tried to regain altitude after striking the taxiing airplane, but was unable to do so.

FAA records show the airplane as a 1964 PA-28-180 registered to Chad Hutchins of Flagstaff, AZ. It is not known if he was flying the plane at the time of the accident.

(Similar aircraft pictured in file photo. Not accident airplane)

FMI: www.ntsb.gov