The Durango-La Plata County Airport temporarily shut down Thursday afternoon after a plane without its wheels down crash-landed on the runway.

Around noon, a single-engine private jet crashed onto the airstrip, closing the runway for more than an hour. Initial reports indicated about 80 gallons of fuel spilled onto the runway, but operations specialist Tony Vicari said further investigation showed that amount to be more like 2 gallons.

The pilot was uninjured, but the plane sustained substantial damage, prompting the airport’s emergency crew to rush to the scene. The runway was cleared and the airport was back to normal operations around 1:15 p.m.

As a result of the incident, an American Airlines departure to Phoenix incurred a 20-minute delay, and an incoming United flight from Denver was diverted to Montrose to refuel before heading back to Durango.

The National Transportation Safety Board will conduct an investigation into the crash, Vicari said.

“Our staff took photos and dimensions, so they can do their investigation without having to physically visit the site.”

The plane was a privately owned “experimental” jet, which Vicari said usually means it was created by the owner. The aircraft’s tail number is N346RG, which is registered to Durango resident Redge Greenberg. It is unclear whether Greenberg was piloting the plane at the time of the incident. He declined comment for this story.

In an Oct. 22 article in Flying Magazine, Greenberg said he has accumulated more than 4,500 hours in a variety of aircraft, but never had flown a jet. He recently finished building the first ever customer bought SubSonex Jet – sold as an “ultra-quick build kit” – in his garage. Greenberg flew it for the first time on Oct. 15. Landing speeds for the aircraft average about 95 miles per hour.

SubSonex Jets cost $135,000. Flying Magazine said Greenberg’s model was “number three in the worldwide fleet.”

jromeo@durangoherald.com