Overview
- A two-seat Piper PA-28 Cherokee lost engine power about five minutes after departing John Wayne Airport and the pilot landed on Huntington State Beach, where the aircraft struck sand and rolled roughly 100 feet.
- Pilot Mike Bremner and his nephew Griffin escaped without injury and there were no reported injuries among beachgoers; officials imposed only a partial closure around the plane.
- California State Parks secured the site and said it will coordinate with the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board to determine the cause of the engine failure.
- Bremner told reporters he declared a mayday after the engine cut out, chose the beach as the safest option and said the incident will not stop him from flying; the plane is registered to his Elder Abuse Airforce nonprofit.
- Investigators are expected to review fuel, maintenance records and pilot procedures as the aircraft remains on the sand, and a formal NTSB report could follow once the technical inquiry is complete.