Pilot survives with moderate injuries after light plane crashes on busy South Auckland road

A pilot has walked away from a spectacular plane crash after his microlight landed upside down on a major South Auckland road this afternoon.

The microlight struck trouble around 2.10pm, crashing on to Runciman Rd near a rural runway at Pukekohe.

Miraculously the pilot escaped the crash with only moderate injuries.

Firefighters spread foam across the road after fuel started leaking from the wreckage.

The crash left a lane blocked and caused major traffic problems in the area.

The Civil Aviation Authority said an investigation was underway into the cause of the crash.

A spokeswoman said they would be speaking to the pilot in the next few days.

He was being treated for moderate injuries at Middlemore Hospital.

At this stage there was little known about the accident and how the plane ended up on the road.

There was just one person on board the tiny plane when it ran into difficulties.

A Fire Service spokesman said the small plane ended up on its roof and leaking fuel into a nearby drain near the intersection of Runciman Rd and Rutherford Rd.

Police directed traffic around the crash scene until the damaged aircraft was cleared from the road just after 4pm.