Plane crashes in field outside Eugene

EUGENE, Ore. - A plane crashed in a field southwest of Eugene on Friday.

The plane was a flight trainer from Lane Community College.

Tony Herrington's family owns the property where the Lane Community College training plane crash landed.

He saw the aviation student and the instructor maneuver the plane to the ground.

"He circled around and came back over those houses and the barns," Herrington told KVAL News, "and then circled around, and then I guess he saw the powerlines, so he came back around and ended up there."

Herrington rushed to see if they needed help.

"The pilot had a gash in his forehead, and the co-pilot seemed to be just fine," he said.

Medics treated the pilot's injury on the scene.

"I think that the pilot seemed to have done a good job in bringing it in," said John Miller, Search and Rescue Coordinator for the Lane County Sheriff's Office.

Miller told KVAL News they believe an engine problem caused the crash landing.

"Any time you can walk away from these things, it's a good thing. and with relatively minor injuries, I'm real happy for these folks," he said.

And Herrington's glad the plane found a way to land in a field.

"I was just looking at which way I would run if they actually crashed where I was at," he said.