Small plane lands on belly at JWA

A small plane landed on its belly at John Wayne Airport on Friday afternoon when its landing gear wouldn’t drop, according to authorities.

Neither of the two people aboard the single-engine Mooney was injured when it landed on a short runway at about 1 p.m., airport spokeswoman Jenny Wedge said.

She said it was unclear why the landing gear did not deploy.

Orange County Fire Authority crews, using a crane, moved the plane in less than 45 minutes, officials said.

John Wayne’s main runway stayed open during the incident, and no significant delays resulted, according to Wedge.

— Jeremiah Dobruck

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck