Minor injuries after experimental plane crashes at Petaluma airport

The crash was reported just after 3 p.m. Sunday at the Petaluma Municipal Airport.|
JULIE JOHNSON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Officials shut down the runways at the Petaluma Municipal Airport Sunday afternoon after a small plane crashed.

The pilot of a Velocity experimental aircraft couldn’t get the landing gear to function and was forced to land anyway about 3 p.m. at the Sky Ranch Drive airport off East Washington Drive, airport manager Bob Patterson said.

Petaluma Police Sgt. Brian Miller said the pilot was the only person on board, and he had only minor injuries.

The crash shut down the runways at the airport for about an hour and a half, Patterson said. The closure forced another plane to redirect away from Petaluma and land at Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport, he said.

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 707-521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjpressdem.

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