Harrison Ford crash-lands plane on golf course — in pictures

Ford was the latest and most serious in a series of crashes and close calls for the 72-year-old action-adventure A-lister, who like his Star Wars alter-ego Han Solo has a taste for aerial thrills. Jonathan Alcorn / AFP Photo

He was pulled Thursday from the plane by golfers and course workers who saw it come down about a quarter-mile short of the runway at Santa Monica Municipal Airport and taken by ambulance to a hospital conscious and breathing. Jonathan Alcorn / AFP Photo

He was pulled from the plane and given initial help by doctors who happened to be playing golf on the course that is right next to Santa Monica Municipal Airport, Los Angeles fire officials said. He was then taken by ambulance to a hospital in a condition described as fair-to-moderate. Damian Dovarganes / AP Photo

National Transportation Safety Board investigator Patrick Jones, left, stands by the small plane. Damian Dovarganes / AP Photo

Mr Ford’s publicist Ina Treciokas said in a statement that he had no other choice but to make an emergency landing. She said his injuries “are not life threatening, and he is expected to make a full recovery.” Jonathan Alcorn / AFP Photo

The plane had been flying at about 3,000 feet and hit a tree on the way down, according to witnesses and officials. Lucy Nicholson / Reuters

The plane, a yellow 1942 Ryan Aeronautical ST3KR with stars on its wings, was upright and mostly intact after the crash. No one on the ground was hurt. Kevork Djansezian / Reuters

The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash in a process that could take up to a year before a final report. NTSB investigator Patrick Jones said “we’re going to look at everything: weather, man, the machine.” Jonathan Alcorn / AFP Photo

Mr Ford is cast to play the swashbuckling Solo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, set for release in December. Zunino Celotto / Getty Images

Harrison Ford crash-landed his Second World War-era airplane after losing engine power, suffering serious but not life-threatening injuries as he used his years of piloting prowess to bring down the plane on a golf course and avoid nearby homes in what one expert called a beautifully executed manoeuvre.