TRUSSVILLE, Alabama -- A small plane made an emergency landing in a large field in this town northeast of Birmingham this morning but there were no serious injuries, according to Trussville police and fire officials.

The three occupants on board had minor injuries but were not taken to the hospital, said Trussville Fire Chief Russell Ledbetter.

"There were some minor cuts and bruises, but they were up and walking around," said Trussville Police Chief Don Sivley. "They are going to end up having a fine Thanksgiving."

The pilot was identified as Kent Ewing, said Trussville Police Lt. Jeff Bridges. They were flying from Virginia to Birmingham for Thanksgiving with relatives when the plane's engine apparently failed just short of the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport, Bridges said.

The pilot radioed a distress call at 9:46 a.m.

"He indicated that he knew he would be putting it down in a field in a safe location but he would not make it to the airport," Bridges said.

Sivley said the plane clipped some trees as it tried to make the landing in a field between Thompson Lane and the Cahaba Cove subdivision.

No houses were damaged.

The plane was damaged in the crash and doesn't appear to be airworthy, Ledbetter said.