Ok so it got worse, no attempt at all for this one

[McMooney]

Small plane crashes onto California freeway and bursts into flames (msn.com)

atleast they didn't get anything wrong

[Hank]

The entire content of the article is in its title . . . .

[kortopates]

agreed, the Mooneyspace title is uninformative as well.
here is a better news article with video clip:
https://ktla.com/news/local-news/small-plane-crashes-on-91-freeway-in-corona-chp/

Hard to say but I really doubt a Mooney would have folded it’s wing so easily coming down on the pickup. On the other hand, shedding a wing might have helped since it enabled the plane to rollout rather than cartwheel. But burning crashes are common on the freeway landings with low wing aircraft - those wings are vulnerable to collision with the dividers and other vehicles; especially with lots of traffic like this pilot found.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[carusoam]

Busy highways make crummy landing zones…

Save your bacon, not your plane’s….

You know you are in trouble when USAToday writes up your accident….

 

Dashcam captures plane landing on a highway, bursting into flames

https://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/nation/2022/08/10/dashcam-captures-plane-landing-highway-bursting-into-flames/10284802002/

Best regards,

-a-

[Skates97]

Fortunately it ended well for all involved, but...

I was based at KAJO for about 2 1/2 years. He is lucky it was not a couple hours later in the day when it is bumper to bumper traffic there on the 91 Freeway. Zooming in I am not sure why he was flying his pattern over the freeway so far from the airport. Abeam the airport he was over the freeway at 1,200' (TPA should be 1,500' but maybe he had already lost the engine and was descending) and a groundspeed of 132mph. He likely had a good tailwind, not uncommon to see 20+ mph as the wind funnels through the pass there even if it is fairly calm on the ground.

I don't know at which point in the flight he lost the engine, but he was at 1,500' and showing 146mph ground speed as he crossed the freeway approaching the airport. Given the speed and that he had leveled off at 1,500' for the previous mile or so I am going to assume he was still making power at that point and was about to lose the engine.

Had he been setting up and preparing to enter a standard pattern instead of airliner pattern the runway may have been reachable or the airport property. At least he could have landed on Railroad St which is not very busy instead of aiming for the 91 Freeway. 

https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N841AD/history/20220809/1818Z/KAJO/KAJO

The fateful flight.

My last flight to KAJO a few weeks back for some fuel is below. I know it's Monday morning quarterbacking, but a closer pattern may have eliminated the luck that he needed to avoid tragedy on the ground.

[MooneyMitch]

33 minutes ago, Skates97 said:

Had he been setting up and preparing to enter a standard pattern instead of airliner pattern the runway may have been reachable or the airport property

I’m not going to comment on this pilot pattern distance decision.

I will comment on flying an airliner pattern distance from the runway....... that’s expected when flying an airliner, not while flying the Mooney (short, mid or long bodies).  

I’ve witnessed airliner pattern distances from the runway so many times over the years with, not only a Mooney, but with many other single engine general aviation aircraft.

Certainly unnecessary (always possible exceptions of course)!