Harrison Ford's small plane after it crashed onto the Penmar Golf Course in Venice. Photo / AFP
Harrison Ford's small plane after it crashed onto the Penmar Golf Course in Venice. Photo / AFP
Harrison Ford, the star of Indiana Jones and Star Wars, is "battered but OK" after crashing his vintage plane onto a golf course in Los Angeles.
Witnesses say the 72-year-old actor was bleeding profusely from his face when rescuers arrived at the crash scene on Penmar golf course.
Ford was alert and conscious when firefighters pulled him from the World War II-era plane and onto a stretcher bound for UCLA trauma center. Ford, who has been flying since the 1960s, was the only person in the plane.
His son Ben tweeted that he was recovering at the hospital. "At the hospital. Dad is ok. Battered, but ok! He is every bit the man you would think he is. He is an incredibly strong man," he tweeted.
"Thank you all for your thoughts and good vibes for my dad."
It was initially reported that Ford was in critical condition, but that was later downgraded to fair to moderate condition.
Reports said Ford suffered lacerations to his head and possible fractures.
"There was blood all over his face. ... Two very fine doctors were treating him, taking good care of him. I helped put a blanket under his hip," golf course employee Howard Tabe told NBC News.
Pat Butler, of the Los Angeles Fire Department, said Ford was lucky to be alive.
"Normally the outcomes are fatalities so yes we are very thankful that the passenger, from what we hear right now, had moderate injuries," he said.
Image 1 of 10: Harrison Ford as Rick Deckard in Blade Runner (1982).
A witness at the scene told the Daily Mail Online that there were wheel parts spread around the golf course lawn, snapped tree branches and piles of medical equipment used to treat Ford at the scene.
"The nose of the plane is completely destroyed and embedded into the ground. The left wing is completely broken, the right wing is smashed where it hit the tree," the witness said.
New Zealand actor Temuera Morrison, who shared the screen with Ford in the 1998 comedy Six Days Seven Nights, told NZME. the crash was "terrible news".
"I think he'll all right hopefully," he said.
Ford was a keen pilot and during filming of Six Days Seven Nights he was also learning to fly helicopters, Morrison said.
He said Ford was "very nice" on the movie set to him and fellow Kiwi actor Cliff Curtis. "In fact he had his tennis coach give us some free shoes and free jandals," he said.
"He was very giving, very nice - and I was in awe of him too because Harrison was one of those actors that you look up to. I just like him because he's got a ruggedness about him - pretty down to earth."
Harrison Ford was conscious after the crash. Photo / AP
In air traffic control audio obtained by TMZ, a calm Ford reported that his engine had failed and asked permission to land.
Butler said it appears Ford strategically picked the golf course to steer clear of people on the ground.
"It's an area that probably presented the least amount of impact to the community," Butler said.
The golf course is just a block from the tarmac at Santa Monica Airport, where Ford keeps his collection of planes.
Witness Cynthia Madrid told local news outlets that it looked like the plane's engine was 'sputtering' on and off while it was flying towards the beach.
Ms Madrid said she saw the plane start to go down but noticed there was no smoke.
It is believed Ford was flying a Ryan PT-22 Recruit - a plane used to train pilots in World War II.
The crash comes just months after Ford was airlifted from the set of the upcoming Star Wars movie after suffering an ankle injury.
Friends who have flown with Ford described the actor as a careful and experienced pilot. However, this isn't the first time Ford has been involved in a crash.
During a routine training flight in October 1999, a helicopter piloted by Ford crashed near Santa Clarita. Ford and his instructor escaped the crash with few injuries, but the helicopter was seriously damaged.
While Ford keeps most of his aircraft at Santa Monica airport, he does fly at his 800-acre ranch in Jackson, Wyoming.
He has twice assisted local search and rescue teams with his helicopter, including one instance in which he picked up a hiker who became dehydrated.
The female hiker vomited as soon as she got into the aircraft, and didn't realize the pilot was Ford until later.
"I can't believe I barfed in Harrison Ford's helicopter!" she later said.
Twitter was alight with messages from friends and fans, wishing Ford a speedy recovery.
