Harrison Ford 'saved several lives' by landing plane on golf course – witness

A witness to the plane crash in which the actor Harrison Ford was injured on Thursday said the actor “saved several lives” when he brought his plane down on a golf course near Los Angeles, avoiding a built-up area nearby.

Eddie Aguglia, 47, was playing a round when Ford brought the plane down, having reported “engine failure” in a call to Santa Monica’s municipal airport, from where he had taken off.

“Looking at where he crashed and how the plane went down, I’m sure there was a moment where he said, ‘I’m not going to risk lives, whatever happens, happens. It’s going to be just me,’” Aguglia told NBC News.

The 72-year-old actor suffered “moderate” injuries after crashing the vintage two-seater plane he was piloting on to a green at Penmar golf course on Thursday afternoon.

Reports said Ford suffered lacerations to his face and possible fractures. Television news footage taken showed him on a stretcher being taken into an ambulance.

“He risked life and limb by putting it down on the golf course instead of trying to go further to try to get back to the airport. Another 25 to 30 yards and … I don’t want to think about it. He saved several lives,” said Aguglia.

Patrick Jones, a National Transportation Safety Board investigator, told a press conference Ford (whom he did not name) had been “absolutely” lucky to escape with his life.

“Anytime a pilot survives an accident, that is a good thing,” said Jones. “I’m sure the pilot is glad that there was a golf course here.”

A local NBC affiliate reported that a doctor who was also on the course was first to reach the actor.

Dr Sanjay Khurana, a spinal surgeon, told NBC4 he “did a brief exam and smelled the fuel and didn’t want it to ignite”. He said he then recognised the actor.

“I watched Star Wars as a kid,” Khurana said. “I think we all did, right? Raiders of the Lost Ark… iconic films.”

Paramedics found Ford to be “alert and conscious” and suffering “moderate trauma”, Patrick Butler, the Los Angeles assistant fire chief, told a press conference at the scene. He added: “We are very thankful that the passenger had [only] very moderate injuries.”

Ford’s son Ben, meanwhile, reported from hospital that his father was “battered but OK” after crashing.

On Twitter, Ben Ford added: “He is every bit the man you would think he is. He is an incredibly strong man.”

The 72-year-old Ford, who appeared in Star Wars, Blade Runner, and The Fugitive, reported engine failure to the Santa Monica airport control tower moments after taking off. In a curt, composed-sounding message he requested “immediate return” and was cleared to land but did not make it to the runway.

Ford, a veteran pilot, was the only occupant of the plane, a Ryan PT-22 Recruit, which was used for training during the second world war. He qualified as a pilot in the 1990s and has made headlines with two rescues, one of a missing boy scout and one a mountain climber in Wyoming.

In 2000 he was piloting a six-seater plane which was blown off a runway in Lincoln, Nebraska; he has also volunteered to fight forest fires.

The United Talent Agency, which represents the actor, said in a statement that his plane stalled upon take off.

“He had no other choice but to make an emergency landing, which he did safely,” the statement said. “He was banged up and is in the hospital receiving medical care. The injuries sustained are not life threatening, and he is expected to make a full recovery.”

Christian Fry, of the Santa Monica Airport Association, said: “I would say that this is an absolutely beautifully executed … forced or emergency landing, by an unbelievably well-trained pilot.”