Pilot Dies in Desert Crash

A pilot was killed when his twin-engine private plane crashed and burned behind the popular Hadley’s Fruit Orchard store in the desert community of Cabazon. A piece of debris from the Cessna 421 fell onto a vacant house behind the store and flames from the burning plane destroyed three vehicles and ignited a 1-acre brush fire, said Don Holt, state Division of Forestry battalion chief. But no other injuries were reported. The pilot, apparently bound for Palm Springs, radioed that he was having engine trouble and was going to try landing on Interstate 10, a Federal Aviation Administration duty officer said. Hadley’s, a frequent stopping place for Palm Springs tourists, fronts on the freeway. “There were nearly 200 people in the store at the time,” said Liseo Sanchez, Hadley’s manager. “We were plenty lucky it missed us but about 40 people who were getting into their tour bus saw the whole thing and rushed back into the store, then smoke from the crash swept in.” There was no immediate identification of the pilot.