COLONIA, N.J. (AP) — The pilot who died when his plane crashed into a house in a New Jersey neighborhood was a retired New York cardiologist and skilled flier with decades of experience.

Dr. Michael Schloss's plane crashed Tuesday morning in the Colonia section of Woodbridge Township, a suburb of New York City. He was headed from Virginia to Linden Airport.

The crash damaged three houses and caused a fire. No one on the ground was injured.

Linden Airport manager Paul Dudley said Tuesday he spoke to Schloss' family in Virginia. He said he knew Schloss for 30 years and called him "a Renaissance man."

Dudley said Schloss also was a licensed airplane mechanic.

Federal investigators say it could take days to remove the wreckage from the house.