Monday, August 02, 2021

Cessna 140, N72712: Incident occurred August 02, 2021 in Stuart, Florida

Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; South Florida

Aircraft experienced engine issues and made an emergency landing on a road. 
Date: 02-AUG-21
Time: 15:22:00Z
Regis#: N72712
Aircraft Make: CESSNA
Aircraft Model: 140
Event Type: INCIDENT
Highest Injury: NONE
Aircraft Missing: No
Damage: UNKNOWN
Activity: PERSONAL
Flight Phase: EN ROUTE (ENR)
Operation: 91
City: STUART
State: FLORIDA

Adam Williams and his 4-year old son.



Port St. Lucie Police Department

Update: 

Well....after a mechanic looked at his plane, grandma came and picked up his son, Williams, received permission from the FAA to take-off. 

We briefly blocked traffic and off he went. We have since spoken to Williams who has already landed safely back in Fort Pierce. 

We’re thankful for this outcome and happy to help.

Earlier:

Pilot with 4 year old son, makes emergency landing on SW Glades Cut-Off Rd. 

At approximately 11:30am, a Cessna 140 made an emergency landing on SW Glades Cut-Off Rd after the engine sputtered and then stopped. The plane was at approximately 2200 feet when the engine quit. 

The Pilot checked the area and made the determination that Glades Cut-Off would be the safest landing spot. The airplane took off from Fort Pierce and was on it’s way to Boca. 

Thankfully the Pilot, Adam Williams, has been a pilot for approximately 9 years and operates his own flight school. Williams calmly followed the following procedure A-airspeed for best glide, B-best field to land, C-checklist, and if time, D-declare an emergency. 

We’re glad everyone is safe.









ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Florida — About 15 or 20 minutes out of Fort Pierce, Adam Williams started having engine trouble.

Which would not necessarily have been a big deal had Williams, 33, been in a car.

Instead, Williams, of Fort Pierce, was in a 1946 single-engine Cessna airplane, and he had his 4-year-old son with him.

They were flying to Boca Raton.

“The engine started to sputter,” Williams said, standing by the plane on the ground. “I just went through the checklist, declared an emergency and landed here.”

The here he referenced was Glades Cutoff Road, south of Midway Road and east of Interstate 95.

Williams, a pilot who also has his own flight instruction business, wound up landing after 11 a.m.

His son's grandmother picked up the boy, while Williams worked on the plane.

"He was all cool," Williams said of his son. "He didn't even really know anything was wrong until we were parked on the side of the road."

After some maintenance – at first they suspected a carburetor – Williams and a mechanic managed to get the plane operational.

Port St. Lucie police did some checking with authorities, blocked the road, and Williams took off on Glades Cutoff Road about 3:15 p.m.

Adam Williams takes off in 1946 Cessna plane from Port St. Lucie Road. Treasure Coast Newspapers

Williams said he regularly flies between Fort Pierce and Boca Raton and follows the same route.

“I've been flying it ever since December back and forth to work,” Williams said. “I work down in Boca, so this saves me about 5, 10 minutes on the drive and the headache of traffic.”

He said his wife, who works for the same company, bought him the plane about two years ago out of Georgia. They flew it up and down the East Coast, and brought it back to Fort Pierce. They refurbished the plane, and he’s flown it regularly.

Monday, Williams said, he was moving it to an airport in Boca Raton where he works.

His son was seated near him, using his iPad, when the engine issues developed.

“I had to fly the airplane, I had to talk to Stuart tower, which I declared the emergency through,” Williams said. “We just circled around this area and landed right into the wind on the road. It was perfect, actually.”

Williams said he’s gone through simulated emergencies he’s taught through training, “but never a real emergency where I had to land off the airport.”

No one was injured, police said.

Many thoughts went through his head, and he said he was wary.

“You could probably hear that over the radio. Yes, I was nervous,” he said. “But there's a mission, you have to get the airplane on the ground.”

4 comments:

  1. I wonder if the kid will remember the this event thank God it turned out well for all... So what was the problem?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Well, they initially suspected the carburetor. Perhaps their first hunch was correct.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. well I hope they have it sorted...learning curve is way too hard esp. with young folk on board

      Delete