Pilot escapes plane crash on water by boaters

RICHMOND, Va. – An elderly pilot escaped serious injury when his single-propeller plane crashed in a Virginia reservoir and he was rescued by a couple on a pontoon boat who tossed him a life preserver.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/tcsCqC) reports 78-year-old Richard Rose Jr. was flying to the Chesterfield County Airport near Richmond when his four-seater crashed into the Swift Creek Reservoir shortly before midday Wednesday.

Randy and Sara Rowekamp jumped into their pontoon boat and headed toward the downed plane, about 150 yards offshore. They say Rose jumped from the wing of the sinking aircraft and was in the water when they threw him a life preserver.

Rose was taken ashore, where paramedics treated him for minor injuries.

State police say the cause of the crash is being investigated.