Laguna Niguel Pilot Lands Plane On The 101 Freeway

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA — Authorities are investigating to determine what forced a small plane piloted by a Laguna Niguel man to make an emergency landing on the southbound Ventura (101) Freeway in Westlake Village, Monday night.

It wasn't immediately clear what caused the plane to have to make an emergency landing. The pilot was identified as Brian Carson, 32, reported the Los Angeles Times. Carson notified Van Nuys Airport Traffic Control that the plane was in trouble shortly before the emergency landing, and he managed to avoid hitting any vehicles on the busy freeway as he made his landing. He had on board with him pilot trainee, Trevor Peterson, 29, of Huntington Beach, the Times reported.

The single-engine Cessna plane was able to safely land on the freeway, forcing the closure of all southbound lanes Sunday night as crews worked to pull the plane off the freeway, cutting down traffic signs to accommodate its wings. The California Highway Patrol declared a SigAlert at 7:36 p.m. Sunday as the freeway was cleared Monday.

The incident occurred at about 7 p.m. Monday just north of Lindero Canyon Road, according to L.A. County Fire Department Dispatch Supervisor Michael Pittman.

The incident will be investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.

It's the second time since 2018 that a plane landed on the 101 Freeway in the area. In 2018, a vintage plane crash-landed on the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills on a Tuesday afternoon and burst into flames, as cars zoomed past. The pilot survived that crash.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.