A Cessna 172 overturned while taxiing behind a United Airlines jet at John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California, on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 7, according to an FAA statement. The incident occurred around 2:30 p.m. as the small aircraft was taxiing behind United Flight 2611. A flight instructor and student were aboard the Cessna, and neither was injured.
Flight School Cites Jet Blast
“One of our flight instructors and a student were in the aircraft when it flipped,” Orange County Flight Center director Niki Shetty told CBS Los Angeles. “Currently there is a major reconstruction and realignment project ongoing at the airport, and general aviation aircraft are being adversely impacted by this project, and flight safety may be jeopardized.”
The flight school attributed the incident to a jet blast from a departing airliner. Airport officials initially cited high winds, although the Orange County Fire Authority declined to confirm whether weather conditions or jet blast caused the aircraft to overturn, according to local ABC 7.
Airport spokesperson AnnaSophia Servin addressed the incident in a statement to the media.
“There were no injuries reported,” Servin told City News Service. “There was no impact to operations. The investigation is ongoing.”
FAA Investigation
The aircraft came to rest upside down on the airport’s ACI Jet ramp. Video from the scene showed emergency crews using a crane to return the Cessna to an upright position.
Jet blast has previously caused damage to general aviation aircraft at other airports. In a 2020 incident at San Luis Obispo, California, an American Eagle regional jet undergoing an engine test overturned a hangar and damaged several light aircraft. The FAA is investigating Saturday’s incident and has not released a final determination of its cause.
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