SEBASTIAN — Strong winds with gusts up to 24 mph are the suspected cause of a plane crashing at the Sebastian Municipal Golf Course near the city’s airport Thursday morning.
The pilot, identified as 57-year-old Robert Malloy, of Davenport, Iowa, was uninjured in the crash and was able to walk away from the plane, the Sebastian Police Department reported Thursday afternoon.
Malloy told investigators that he was practicing his approaches and take-offs when he experienced a loss in speed and was blown off course of the runway.
He was flying a 1999 Velocity Experimental Aircraft, which was severely damaged in the crash. The plane struck trees on the golf course before coming to a rest. The estimated damage is about $100,000.
According to the Sebastian Police Department, witnesses said they heard a high revving noise from the plane prior to the crash.
Malloy was the only one in the plane at the time of the crash.
Operations at the Sebastian Municipal Airport were uninterrupted.
