(Image source from: NBC Los Angeles)

A pilot died after his airplane crashed near the 5 Freeway in Los Angeles on Sunday afternoon.

The pilot was reportedly trapped in the wreckage after a small, fixed-wing, single-engine aircraft crashed in a field adjacent to the interstate at 12600 Encinitas Avenue in Sylmar, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

The Beechcraft BE33 aircraft crashed under "unknown circumstances" around 5 miles north of Van Nuys Airport around 1:45 p.m., Federal Aviation Administration Public Affairs Manager Ian Gregor said.

Rescuers managed to pull the man from the plane, but he was pronounced dead at the scene, the LAFD said.

The airplane was registered to Scott Watson, of Marina Del Rey, and was manufactured in 1980, according to FAA records. At nearly 7:30 p.m., the LA City Coroner confirmed to NBC4 that the 55-year-old Watson was the person killed in the crash.

The LAFD said the crash did not spark a fire, damage structures or cause any other injuries.

The National Transportation Safety Board is overseeing the probe.

By Sowmya Sangam