Pilot Forced To Make Emergency Landing on 3-Lane Road, Narrowly Missing Cars
Commuters on their way to work early Wednesday morning on 36th street in the city of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, probably expected traffic.
Maybe they were used to seeing accidents or avoiding motorcyclists, but they probably did not expect what ended up happening.
At around 6 a.m., a small plane started roaring down onto the three-lane road. Security cameras at a nearby car dealership caught its descent.
Obviously, something was wrong, and as the plane careened onto the roadway it clipped a light pole, damaging the plane further.
Witnesses were shocked by the event, and drivers were surprised to hear and then see the plane try to share the road with them.
“It just went through the intersection, right through the lights and landed right in front of us,” said Andrew Grieg, who was driving at the time.
“It could have been worse — the door of the plane opened and they kind of walked out,” he said. “I’m like ‘Oh, OK, so they seem to be alright.'”
Apparently, the Piper PA-31 Navajo was experiencing issues with the fuel pump and lost power, causing the pilot to make a risky, unscheduled landing in an area clearly not meant for planes.
The pilot, a woman who has remained unnamed, can be heard calling the control tower as the plane began to experience issues.
“I’ve just lost the right fuel pump,” she said, “that’s why we’re requesting 35-right.”
They were only about three miles from the Calgary airport when the pilot was forced to make the emergency landing.
Fortunately for her, her crew member, and four passengers, the plane landed as gracefully as could be expected and everyone deplaned unharmed.
Jamal Hammoud, whose house and property back up to the road where the scene unfolded, was just as surprised by everyone else, thinking at first that it was a train accident.
“I saw the plane landing, just missing a car,” he said. “Lots is going through your head when you see an airplane landing right in front of your house. You’re thinking about the damage that could have been done.”
“You think about how many people could have been hurt. You think about your family, your house.”
Once he realized no one was hurt, though, he quickly used the opportunity to joke with his family. “I have an airplane,” he told his wife, “let’s go for a vacation.”
Next, he turned to his kids and told them he was flying them to school that day. Not true, but that would have certainly been quite the entrance.
“There were no injuries to anyone on the ground or involving any other vehicular traffic on 36th street,” said Calgary EMS rescue, “so it was quite extraordinary.”
Submit your story here, and subscribe to our best uplifting stories here.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
