A pilot escaped injury after his Cessna crashed while taking off from a Fraser River sand bar Saturday afternoon.

Police say the pilot, a 53-year-old man from Vancouver, was trying to take off from the sand bar west of Island 22 when the plane flipped and became partially submerged in shallow water.

Chilliwack Search and Rescue reached the downed aircraft an hour later. The pilot was not injured, fortunately.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is investigating.