Meg Roussos / The BulletinPilot William Espinoza, 30, left, and passengers Rebekah Schantz-Kemper, 24, and an unidentified 11-year-old female, all of Prineville, stand next to the parked plane that Espinoza landed east of Bend on Highway 20 when it ran out of gas on a flight from Tracey, California, to Prineville on Friday.

A small airplane with three people aboard ran out of gas and landed safely Friday night on U.S. Highway 20, about 11 miles east of Bend.

The occupants of the plane, pilot William Espinoza, 30, of Prineville; his sister-in-law, Rebekah Schantz-Kemper, 24, of Prineville, and an 11-year-old girl, were not injured, according to Sgt. Aaron Harding of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office. All three are related.

The four-passenger 1971 Piper Cherokee 140 took off from Tracy, California, Friday afternoon and was flying to Prineville.

“He ran out of fuel on the way … he diverted to the Bend airport but obviously didn’t make it,” Harding said.

The clear, moonlit evening may have aided the safe landing on a straight stretch of highway at about 7:15, Harding said.

The plane came down just east of Rickard Road.

The nose of the Cherokee was in the westbound lane of the highway and the tail of the plane was hanging off the road.

One lane was blocked and traffic was being flagged through the area.

The plane was going to be refueled and perhaps be able to take off overnight, Harding said.

— Reporter: 541-617-7812,

ddarling@bendbulletin.com