MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — A small plane carrying only the pilot crashed in the water off a South Carolina beach popular among tourists, officials said.
The single-engine monoplane was flying a banner before falling into the ocean near Myrtle Beach around 11:30 a.m. on Monday, according to a statement from the Federal Aviation Administration. A local hospital treated the pilot for non-life-threatening injuries, Corporal Chris Starling of the Myrtle Beach Police Department told The Associated Press.
An eyewitness posted on Facebook that the pilot was conscious and speaking after being taken to shore.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the incident. Local police were coordinating Tuesday afternoon with the U.S. Coast Guard, FAA and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources to remove the plane from the sea, Starling said.
Five people died earlier this month in a fiery single-engine plane wreck by a golf course in nearby North Myrtle Beach. Another banner plane landed earlier this weekend off a crowded New Hampshire beach. Lifeguards rescued the pilot without any injuries.