Video: Cessna Crashes Nose-First Into Long Beach Airport Hangar

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a dramatic crash which took place Monday afternoon at an airport outside of Los Angeles. At approximately 2:18 p.m. a Cessna 172 fell from the sky and planted nose first into the roof of a hangar on the tarmac of Long Beach Airport.

Unbelievable video shows the plane quite literally sticking out of the hangar’s roof. The plane’s body tilts precariously forward, as if it could flip upside down at any moment.

Firefighters scaled the hangar’s roof in order to assist the pilot, who remained trapped in the cabin after the wreck. During rescue efforts, the plane reportedly leaked more than 45 gallons of gasoline.

Miraculously, the pilot escaped with only minor injuries. According to the FAA, the pilot was the sole occupant of the vessel. He had been practicing take-offs and landings when the incident occurred. His identity has yet to be released, though officials estimate he is in his 40s.

According to Long Beach Airport spokesperson Kate Kuykendall, who spoke with KTLA, the crash did not affect any commercial flights arriving or departing from Long Beach Airport on Monday.

This is the third Cessna crash in two weeks in the area. Last Saturday, six people were killed when a Cessna C550 Citation jet missed the runway and exploded in flames. The pilot was about 500 feet from the landing strip, unable to see due to thick early morning fog conditions.

That crash occurred at the French Valley Airport in Riverside County. Less than a week earlier, on July 3, another Cessna 172 crashed at the same airport just after takeoff. One person was killed out of the four people on board during that incident. Video of that accident shows the Cessna toppled upside down against the wall of a hangar.

In addition to the FAA, the National Transportation Safety Board is looking into Monday’s incident in Long Beach. A preliminary update is expected within the next few days.