A pilot was taken to the hospital with injuries after two planes crashed at the Hollister Municipal Airport July 19, according to authorities. The other pilot involved in the crash was uninjured.
Hollister Police responded to a report that two aircraft had collided while landing at the airport at 60 Airport Drive, the Hollister Police Department said. One of the planes had caught on fire following the collision.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration’s initial incident report, a Cirrus SR22 “landed on top of” a Vans RV-8 at about 11:40am, “resulting in substantial damage.” Only one pilot was on board each aircraft.
When Hollister Police officers arrived, they located one of the planes on the runway with significant damage. Members of the airport community and Hollister firefighters had extinguished the fire within minutes, police said.
The fire department and paramedics provided medical treatment to one of the pilots, who was transported to Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital, authorities said.
Officers spoke with witnesses at the scene and soon located the second plane that was involved in the crash. That plane’s pilot was uninjured, and the aircraft showed minor damages, police said.
Local police and airport authorities notified the FAA, which is investigating the crash.
The registered owner of the Cirrus plane is Aviation Module LLC, based in Los Angeles, according to FAA records. The owner of the Vans RV-8 is Angelo Lombardo, of Sunnyvale.
“The Hollister Police Department would like to thank fellow first responders, Hollister Fire Department and American Medical Response (AMR), for their rapid response (tending) to any injuries received from this incident. We would also like to thank the airport community for their cooperation and assistance during this incident,” Hollister PD said in a statement.
