A Florida woman has responded after she had to land her plane in the middle of a busy interstate highway, calling it a “miracle” that things ended in a safe manner.
When you’re getting on a flight, there are plenty of things that can go wrong and cause disruption to your journey. If a plane has a technical issue, that might add a lengthy delay, or if you end up in a queue of planes, you could end up waiting a little while too.
If you’re flying your own plane, these delays are more in your control, but so too are the dangers that come with flying. Plenty of pilots have had to bail out of their plans during take-off and landing, leading them to put their plane down on a beach, golf course, or even a stretch of road.
Over in Florida, a pilot and their trainee had to abort their planned landing at Pensacola International Airport on August 4; instead, landing their single-engine Piper PA-28 Cherokee on the I-10.
Pilot responds after landing on Florida interstate
One of the pilots onboard told air traffic control that they had an engine issue, with oil dropping to low levels and fumes being smelt in the cockpit. So, they lined the plane up with the highway and dropped it down there.
Dash camera footage from one driver surfaced after the landing, with them telling WEAR that it was a “miracle” landing, especially as they narrowly avoided hitting a road sign.
Now, the pilot, Emily Shelton, has apologized on TikTok, saying: “My fault for the traffic guys. All jokes aside, thank you everyone for all your kind words,” alongside a photo of the plane sat on the highway.
Screenshot via TikTokShelton’s apology has gone viral too.
Shelton has earned praise from plenty of social media users, as well as from the drivers on the road.
“The way you maneuvered that plan under the highway sign omg f*cking legend,” one said. “You have the worlds best resume in aviation bro,” another said. “Nice job of not panicking! Got to be ready when taking to the skies where anything can happen at any time,” another added.
The young pilot isn’t the only one to go viral recently for their landing. Over in California, a man and his nephew had to land on a beach after their engine failed.
A student pilot in Argentina also had to land by herself after her instructor jumped out of their plane while in mid-air and died.
I’m Abhishek Sharma, an author at TigerJek.com. I enjoy exploring games, testing different strategies, and turning what I learn into clear, useful guides. My goal is to help players understand the game better and improve without the usual confusion.
