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Light plane crashes into Sunshine Coast backyard

The plane crashed in a backyard.

The plane crashed in a backyard. Photo: ABC

A pilot has escaped serious injury after crashing a six-seater plane in a backyard on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

Witnesses say the Beechcraft plane hit a nature strip and trees before coming to rest in a backyard at Palmwoods.

A spokeswoman for the Queensland Ambulance Service said one man had been treated for a back injury.

Neighbour John Leach said he was in the shower when he heard the plane come down.

“I thought a car had run into my shed so I came racing out, but it took me a while to work out what had happened,” he said.

“A plane, that would be the last thing I was thinking about.”

Emergency services and aviation experts remain at the scene.

Mr Leach said the pilot climbed out of the plane after the crash.

“Only the pilot was on board and he climbed out of the plane and laid on the lawn,” he said.

“It’s taken out a lot of the trees and then spun around and then has landed in the backyard of one of the neighbours.”

plane crash sunshine

The pilot was able to climb out of the downed plane. Photo: ABC/Bruce Atkinson

The plane crashed into Joedee Morel’s backyard as she was metres away inside her house.

“I was shocked but immediately concerned for whoever was in that plane,” she said.

Ms Morel called triple-0 and was relieved to find the pilot was coherent and in good spirits despite the ordeal.

“He leaned on a tree and I gave him my hand, he couldn’t go any further so he just laid on the wing — he said his back hurt,” she said.

Mr Morel said the pilot phoned his wife “who was just as shaky as him” when she arrived at the scene.

sunshine coast plane crash

Joedee Morel helped the pilot when the plane crashed in her backyard. Photo: ABC/Bruce Atkinson

The incident came less than 24 hours after a young pilot was injured in a hard landing of a helicopter near the Sunshine Coast airport.

QFES Acting Area Commander Geoff Hunter praised the pilot for landing the plane safely.

“It’s quite amazing — he’s landed in an area without power lines and he’s used the fence as a line and just missed some big trees at the back,” he said.

“It appears he’s done a really good job in a situation that he could have hit the houses, or powerlines or some really large trees.”

Mr Hunter said the flight tower at Maroochydore Airport received a mayday call this morning after the pilot apparently lost power.

“Any aircraft incident you’d imagine in a residential area like this could be a lot worse,” he said.

“Fortunately he’s in the hands of QAS but appears to be in reasonable condition.”

-ABC 

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