The pilot, identified as 56-year-old George Pettway of Wheatley Heights, Long Island, was the only person on board. Pettway was alert when he was pulled from the wreckage, and was taken to Jersey City Medical Center where he was listed in stable condition.
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The FAA says the Piper PA-28 crashed at about 10 a.m. in the area of Avenue E and East 41st Street.
Officials say Pettway was trapped inside the plane screaming 'get me out!'
(Photo courtesy RadioMoBounce)
The plane ended up upside down, with some of the wreckage entangled in power lines.
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"I actually did see a flash go by, and then I heard 'boom, boom, boom' and I ran outside," says eyewitness Anthony Palmisano.
No one on the ground was injured. Four cars on the street were destroyed or damaged in the crash. The plane also narrowly missed a gas station.
"He had complications over the Statue of Liberty, and decided to take this route," says Bayonne Police Captain Robert School.
It is still not clear what the complications were.
The cause of the crash is under investigation by the FAA.