Two 'lucky' men walk away from Pompano plane crash unharmed, authorities say

Two men walked away without major injuries after making an emergency crash landing in a single-engine airplane just short of Pompano Beach Air Park on Tuesday afternoon.

"Amazing," Pompano Beach Fire Rescue spokeswoman Sandra King said. "No one was injured. No one was on the ground … this was their lucky day."

A 42-year-old student pilot was flying the plane on an approach to Pompano Beach Air Park when the Cessna had engine trouble, King said.

Moments before the crash, the plane lost power, the 27-year-old instructor pilot told authorities. He told the student to "bring it up," but the plane continued to lose altitude, King said.

The instructor pilot took over the plane "and landed it just short of the air park," King said.

The plane, tail number N739JN, was heading east when it clipped a palm tree and slammed into a concrete pole at the intersection of Northeast 10th Street and Fifth Avenue; it broke in half upon landing.

The student pilot suffered a laceration to his hand, King said, and the instructor did not appear to be physically injured. Both were transported to North Broward Medical Center for examination.

"They were walking around the plane when [emergency responders] got there," King said.

The names of the men will not be released because they are hospital patients.

"It is absolutely amazing that the two individuals walked away from such a plane crash," King said.

The tower at Pompano Beach Air Park reported the crash to fire-rescue dispatch at 5:52 p.m.

On Tuesday night, two fire trucks were on scene. Foam, used to dilute the fuel that spilled from the plane, covered the ground.

Residents walked to the crash site and snapped photos of the destroyed plane with cameras and phones.

"It's pretty crazy," Zach Chappie, 21, said. "It's not all that common."

Izabel Silva, who lives near the wreckage, said she often worries that a plane will crash into her home because she lives close to the air park.

"I don't like the idea," she said. "I hope it doesn't happen anymore. The guys, they are lucky."

Federal Aviation Administration officials were scheduled to arrive at the scene Tuesday night. After their inspection is complete, the wreckage will be removed, King said.