FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. — A pilot and passenger escaped injury after making an emergency landing in western Fresno County after an engine failure Thursday afternoon.
The emergency landing happened around 11:30 a.m., August 13, after a 1968 Piper PA-28-140—a fixed wing, single-engine airplane registered in Redding, Calif.—experienced an engine failure. Officials said the pilot safely landed on West Jayne Avenue, near South Alpine Avenue, in Coalinga.
A small plane registered in Redding, Calif., made an emergency landing on a road in western Fresno County after an engine failure on Thursday afternoon, Aug. 13, 2026. (Courtesy: Fresno County Sheriff’s Office)
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the plane had just departed from Harris Ranch Airport before the crash. The aircraft was carrying Nancy Overton and her flight instructor, Ellysia Jackson, who were headed to compete in the Palms to Pines Air Race, according to Eric Marshall, Overton’s husband. He said neither woman was injured.
The plane is registered to the Tres Amigos Flying Club in Redding and has a valid permit. The FAA is investigating. The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office said there was no structural damage to the plane or surrounding property.
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