As investigators continue looking into the emergency landing of a plane towing an advertising banner last month in Camarillo, aviation experts and local airport officials say such flights pose no unusual risks in the area.

The aircraft that flipped over during the emergency landing July 10 in an industrial park was registered to Van Wagner Aerial Marketing, which operates out of the Camarillo Airport and is one of the leading aerial advertising businesses in the country.

"It's like any other airplane coming in and out of the airport," said Chris Hastert, deputy director of the Camarillo Airport. Such flights are safe, he said.

The pilot told authorities that the plane lost power, but the exact cause of the emergency landing is still under investigation, said a National Transportation Safety Board official.

Officials at Van Wagner's headquarters in Hollywood, Fla., did not respond to repeated phone calls seeking comment.

According to NTSB records, about 11 banner planes have crashed in California since 1983, with a total of three fatalities.

The Federal Aviation Administration does not have a record of how many banner planes operate in California, said FAA spokesman Ian Gregor.

In 2007, a total of 195 airplane accidents occurred in California, according to NTSB records.

To operate out of the Camarillo Airport, banner planes must follow basic FAA safety regulations like every other airplane, Hastert said.

Fly at slower speeds

The FAA requires the operator of a banner plane to apply for a certification of waiver and provide a list of its pilots certified to fly banner planes, according to a 2003 FAA banner-towing handbook.

A pilot can either take off with a banner already in tow, or can take off and then snag the banner as it rests on the ground.

Camarillo resident Kathy Tebben said that while she was shopping a few weeks ago, she noticed a plane trying to pick up its banner while circling above the Target store adjacent to the airport. She said the plane flew very low at times, though she didn't know how high it was.

"It just seemed like it was kind of risky," said Tebben, who added that she did not feel unsafe around the airport.

The minimum flying altitude for all planes is 500 feet, except during takeoffs and landings, according to FAA regulations. Going below 500 feet to pick up and drop banners at an airport is included in those exceptions, Gregor said.

Chris Dancy, spokesman for the Maryland-based Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, said banner-towing aircraft don't have higher rates of accidents than other planes but added that they do fly at much slower speeds.

Dancy said banner planes have to fly just above the airplane's stall speed because of the banner.

Been a good tenant here'

"At or below stall speed, the wind doesn't generate enough lift to support the aircraft" and the plane will drop, Dancy said. He noted that this type of flight — called the slow flight regime — is taught in basic flight training and is done during takeoff and landing of all planes.

Pete Mason, pilot and owner of Pete Mason Aerial Towing in Santa Paula, also said flying banner planes is no more dangerous than other flights but added that towing his 150-foot-long banner can slow the plane down about 30 mph.

Camarillo Airport Manager Aaron Walsh said Van Wagner hires its own pilots, operates under an airport activity permit and pays rent to the airport for aircraft storage.

"They're their own business. We just collect the rent," Walsh said. "They've been a good tenant here with us."

Ventura County Airport Director Todd McNamee noted that the planes primarily fly over the beach during the summer and don't advertise over city or residential areas.

McNamee said land development around the Camarillo Airport, including the Camarillo Premium Outlets, is safe and is done according to standards in the area's land use plan.

The plan takes into consideration the developments' height, density and type of use, among other things, McNamee said.