FELLSMERE — A pilot was seriously injured after the plane he was in crashed along a private ranch just east of Interstate 95, police said. The name of the pilot, whom officials described as a man, was not publicly released.
“The (pilot’s) family has been notified,” said Keith Touchberry, police chief for the Fellsmere Police Department. FAA officials said the plane was an Aviat Pitts S-2B, which is an aerobatic biplane.
The pilot was the only person aboard the privately-owned aircraft, Touchberry said. Ranch personnel saw the plane overhead and heard the loud crash moments later.
“They called 911 after hearing (the crash),” Touchberry said.
The incident involving the single-engine plane happened about 10:35 a.m. Thursday in an undeveloped area of land in the city of Fellsmere. The wreck occurred in an empty cow pasture two miles north of State Road 60 and near the 150-mile marker, Touchberry said.
Indian River County sheriff’s deputies, fire rescue and Fellsmere police responded to the scene. It took first responders nearly 30 minutes to find the wreckage because of the tall tree lines in the underdeveloped area, Touchberry said.
“We had several units dispatched,” said Sean Gibbons, deputy chief with Indian River County Fire Rescue. “We did a wide area search.”
The man was flown to HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital in Fort Pierce.
The FAA and National Transporation Safety Board were notified of the crash. Both agencies were investigating the cause of the collision.