Plane Takes Off On Hwy 101 After Emergency Landing: Student Pilot, 25, Forced Down After Running Out of Fuel
http://www.keyt.com
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. - The student pilot of a single-engine Cessna miscalculated on fuel, forcing him to make an emergency landing on Highway 101 during a solo training flight between Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo.
All lanes of Highway 101 were re-opened to traffic after the pilot took off.
The Cessna landed in the southbound lanes of Highway 101, then taxied off the highway east of Mariposa Riena just after 4:30 p.m. Friday.
The student pilot was the only one on board the aircraft and was not hurt.
The plane was rented from Above All Aviation.
The student pilot,who asked that his name not be reported said there was a lot of traffic 101 when the plane lost power. He thanked the driver of a red convertible for pulling over and directing traffic away from the plane as he landed and steered it onto the shoulder.
The driver, Warren White, is also a pilot who said he saw that the Cessna's propeller had stopped. White said the student pilot managed to avoid two cars, a motorcycle and a power line.
A few cars going in the other direction got into an accident, but California Highway Patrol officers said no one was injured.
Above All Aviation rented the 1960 fixed wing single engine Cessna, nicknamed Norma Jean, to the 25-year-old student for a solo cross country flight needed to get his private pilot's license. The student had stopped at airports in Paso Robles and Santa Maria before running out of fuel on his return flight.
Chief pilot Bill Patterson drove to the plane, refueled it and then let his assistant fly it back to the airport. The student pilot was not on board. He was offered a ride back in a land-bound automobile and took it.
He said he has every intention to complete the hours needed to get his private pilot's license.
===============
A light aircraft, apparently out of fuel, made an emergency landing on
Highway 101 near Gaviota Friday afternoon, according to the Santa Barbara County Fire Department.
The single-engine plane, a Cessna 172, landed on the southbound highway
about a mile south of Mariposa Reina, said fire Engineer Paul
Christensen.
After touching down, it taxied to the side of the roadway.
"The plane landed on the freeway, it did not crash," Christensen said.
Only the pilot was on board, and he was uninjured in the incident, which occurred at about 4:30 p.m., fire officials said.
About two hours later, after the aircraft was refueled, the freeway was
shut down briefly, allowing the plane to takeoff from the highway and
be flown back to the Santa Barbara Airport.
The 25-year-old student pilot from Michigan reportedly was returning to
Santa Barbara on a training flight after stops in Paso Robles and Santa
Maria.
The aircraft apparently was trying to make it to the Santa Barbara
Airport when the engine cut out at about 5,000 feet over the
Gaviota Pass, and it was forced to land.
The slow lane in the area was blocked off while officials worked to
secure the aircraft, Christensen said, and motorists in the area were
urged to use caution.
A non-injury vehicle accident occurred in the northbound lanes shortly
after the plane touched down, presumably involving a driver distracted
by the aircraft landing on the highway.
Original article and photo: http://www.noozhawk.com
Above All Aviation: http://www.aboveallsba.com
http://registry.faa.gov/N7593X
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment