Pilot flips plane trying to land at hot springs in west Fresno County

A 78-year-old man lost control of his plane Wednesday while trying to land in Mercey Hot Springs, in the foothills west of Interstate 5, the Fresno County Sheriff’s office said. He was not seriously hurt.

Sheriff’s spokesman Tony Botti said the small aircraft took off from Petaluma earlier in the morning and flipped over during its landing attempt on the Mercey Hot Springs airstrip. The pilot was the only one in the plane and was lucky to walk away with only minor injuries to his shoulder and face, Botti added.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board were informed of the crash, Botti said.

This story was originally published March 1, 2017 at 5:35 PM with the headline "Pilot flips plane trying to land at hot springs in west Fresno County."