A day after a single-engine plane crashed in the backyard of a Camden County home Wednesday afternoon, trapping two people in the wreckage, police identified the pilot and his passenger and revealed the extent of their injuries.
The aircraft landed upside down in the backyard of a home along Linden Avenue in Lindenwold shortly before 1 p.m. Wednesday after somehow missing houses. [[397623721, C]]
Lindenwold Police said the 66-year-old pilot Wayne Gilchrist of Marlton, New Jersey suffered severe facial cuts that "required a large number of stitches." His daughter told NBC10 that he received hundreds of stitches and would need reconstructive surgery. She said he was only able to communicate with his hands as he was treated.
Gilchrist's passenger, 72-year-old David Misek of Cherry Hill suffered a broken hip upon impact that would require surgery, said police.
Both men were listed in stable condition at Cooper University Hospital, said police.
Due to the severity of Gilchrist's injuries, investigators hadn't interviewed him as of Thursday morning but they had spoken to Misek who told them that the plane "experienced an unknown mechanical issue prior to the crash," said police. [[397656531, C]]
Gilchrist's daughter called her father, a cancer survivor, a hero for avoiding homes.
"It looks like it came between four homes kind of on a diagonal, struck some trees and then ended up on the ground," said Lindenwold Police Chief Tom Brennan. [[397664831, C]]
As SkyForce10 hovered overhead a short time later, you could see firefighters from Lindenwold and Cherry Hill working on the aircraft that crashed into some trees and split into two.
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"You could tell something wasn't right," said Willie Jones who heard the plane go down. "It was too low. The sound was too low."
After more than 30 minutes, crews pulled both men from the upside down cockpit. No one on the ground was hurt.
"It's kind of crazy," said Cydnei, who lives next door to the yard where the plane crashed. "There are so many houses and trees around here but somehow it managed to miss like everything." [[397700441, C]]
Officials say the plane took off from Flying W Airport in Medford, New Jersey but it's unclear where it was headed. A search of the FAA registry shows the plane is a 1946 Ercoupe 415-C registered to a man from Chesapeake City, Cecil County, Maryland. Investigators said 911 calls alerted them to the crash.
Besides the wreckage, crews also needed to clean up a fuel leak, said investigators. They hoped to clear the wreck Thursday, said police.
It had been about 45 years since the last time a plane went down in Lindenwold.
Federal investigators would determine to specific cause of the crash.
