Pilot Dies After Being Struck in the Head by Propeller

EL CAJON, Calif. (KTLA) -- A pilot trying to manually start the engine of a Piper Cherokee aircraft was struck in the head by the propeller and killed.

The accident happened at about 8:30 a.m. Monday at Gillespie Field, said El Cajon spokeswoman Monica Zech.

A single-engine Piper plane with two pilots aboard was taxiing out to the runway when the engine stalled.

One of the pilots got out of the cockpit and tried to "hot prop" the propeller by manually turning it, Zech said.

The man was taken to Sharp Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

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