Pilot escapes with minor injuries when small plane crashes into hangar's roof at California airport

Authorities say a pilot escaped with only minor injuries after a single-engine plane crashed nose-first into the roof of a hangar at a Southern California airport

California-Plane Into Roof (KABC-7)

A pilot escaped with only minor injuries after a single-engine plane crashed nose-first into the roof of a hangar Monday at a Southern California airport, authorities said.

The crash happened around 2:30 p.m. while the pilot of the Cessna 172 was “practicing landings and takeoffs" at Long Beach Airport, south of Los Angeles, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.

Video aired by ABC 7 showed the nose of the plane embedded in the hangar's roof, with the tail sticking straight up.

The pilot, who was the only person on board, had to be extricated from the wreckage and was hospitalized with minor injuries, the news station said.

About 45 gallons of fuel leaked from the plane after the crash, the fire department said.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.