CLEVELAND - UPDATED: One man was seriously injured in an ultralight aircraft crash at a private airport in White County Friday afternoon.
The incident happened about 1:45 p.m. at Mountain Air Park east of Cleveland when the small craft struck the side of a hangar off the west side of the grass runway.
Witnesses say the aircraft got airborne but they knew he was in trouble by the way it sounded.
The pilot, whose identity has not been released, was believed to be in his late 40s or early 50s and was said to have received serious injuries.
Witnesses ran to the crash site and helped pull the victim from the wreckage, because fuel was leaking.
An ambulance from White County Emergency Medical Services transported the aircraft operator to the hospital. Fire personnel stood by until they were able to stop the leaking gasoline and the small aircraft was pulled away from the hangar by a tractor.
One person on scene said they believed the pilot has just purchased the aircraft from someone else at the park.
Due to the type of aircraft, an investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration or National Transportation Safety Board is not expected.
The aircraft narrowly missed Habersham Electric Membership Corp. overhead power lines that run along the side of the runway.
