CORONA, Calif. (CNS) — A single-engine airplane experiencing engine trouble crash-landed on the Riverside (91) Freeway in Corona Tuesday, triggering a fire from which the plane's occupants narrowly escaped unharmed.

The forced landing involving the six-seat Piper Cherokee PA-32-300 occurred at 12:30 p.m. on the eastbound 91 at Lincoln Avenue, according to the Federal Aviation Administration and the California Highway Patrol.

The Cherokee was "flying to Corona Municipal Airport (when) ... the pilot reported an engine issue," according to an FAA statement.

The pilot was unable to make the turn north toward the airfield, possibly due to a rapid loss of altitude, and opted to make an emergency landing straight ahead on the freeway. The Cherokee made contact with a Toyota Tundra pickup truck, causing unspecified minor damage, but did not injure the driver, officials said.

Images captured on motorists' dashcams, as well as Caltrans' freeway cameras, showed the plane coming down hard and clipping a retaining wall, igniting a fire on board, then bouncing to a stop, with the nose of the Cherokee pointing into lanes and the tail on the shoulder of the eastbound 91.

Corona Fire Department engine crews reached the location within five minutes and discovered the plane in flames. The pilot and passenger, neither of whom were identified, self-extricated themselves from the wrecked aircraft and did not require medical aid.

No motorists were injured.

Corona firefighters extinguished the blaze just before 1 p.m.

There was no word on the airport from which the Cherokee departed. According to FAA records, the 50-year-old plane, tail number N841AD, is owned by a company in Anaheim.

Eastbound 91 traffic came to a virtual standstill immediately after the crash. However, CHP officers only closed the No. 4 and 5 lanes, where the plane went down. The Lincoln Avenue on-ramp was also closed. Three lanes, plus the fast-track lane, remained open.

As of 5 p.m., the burned-out remains of the Cherokee were still on the freeway, but the wreckage was expected to be cleared Tuesday night.