A Princeton pilot escaped serious injuries after flipping a recently restored vintage biplane on a Robbinsville airport runway Friday afternoon, according to police.
Alan Lopez, 70, was alone in the 1929 plane when it overturned after landing at the Trenton-Robbinsville Airport near the 16th hole of the Miry Run Golf Course.
Police said Mr. Lopez was trying to land the plane when he lost control, causing the aircraft to spin and flip over. Mr. Lopez was able to walk away with only a minor cut on his forehead.
Mr. Lopez, a Princeton University alumnus, is no stranger to flying.
According a 2002 article in the Princeton Alumnus Weekly, the seasoned pilot has flown his own vintage Stearman open-cockpit biplane to every state in the continental U.S. and every Canadian province with only a compass and aeronautical chart in hand.
His travels are documented in “Biplane Odyssey,” where he paints a picture of his flying adventures through detailed descriptions of terrain and landmarks such as rivers, railroads, highways and mountain ridges all of which guided his navigation.
According to the 2002 article, Mr. Lopez was only a “recreational flyer” until a trip to Van Sant Airport, in Erwinna, Pa., almost 30 years ago.
”Just one flight in an open-cockpit plane, with a spectacular view of the countryside from a thousand feet up,” he said in the profile. “Anybody would be hooked.”
From there Mr. Lopez learned to fly a Stearman biplane from the World War II era, according to the profile.
After the biplane overturned on Friday, the small airport’s runway on Sharon Road was closed to air traffic until the plane was uprighted.
Mr. Lopez told a reporter who went to the airport after the accident that he was “fine” but declined to give his name.
He was unable to be reached for comment in time for this article’s deadline.
The investigation has been turned over to the Federal Aviation Administration and the Aeronautics Division of the state Department of Transportation.

