DECISIVE ACTION

Pilot Lands on Highway in Terrifying Maneuver After Engine Trouble

The pilot, 65, managed to land the plane safely... on a busy interstate highway.

A pilot landed a light aircraft in the middle of a highway after experiencing mid-air engine trouble. The daring maneuver unfolded in front of stunned motorists on Interstate 78 in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, on Saturday morning. “It was an Easter miracle,” said witness Victor Machese. The pilot, a 65-year-old man, was headed from Solberg Airport in New Jersey to Indiana when he became concerned about the engine. ABC7 New York reported that transmissions from the cockpit showed that he was reluctant to go wheels down on the road, but decided to do so because he knew he couldn’t reach the next airport. Police said the Michigan native got the 1995 Commander 114B down safely. Motorists watched in awe and recorded the spectacle on their mobile phones. Machese was full of praise for the pilot. “He landed in two lanes. His wings were literally from almost the center median to the grass on the other side, and like I said, he didn’t look like he was freaking out, he was just looking straight ahead,” he said. The pilot had a 34-year-old passenger on board. No one was injured. The Federal Aviation Administration and state police are investigating.

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