Small plane makes emergency landing
EXETER TOWNSHIP » Emergency responders had to deal with a unique kind of traffic issue late Monday night.
Around 10 p.m., a Cessna 182 airplane landed on Route 422 near Daniel Boone Road.
According to the Exeter Township Fire Department, the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing when the plane’s engine failed. The “young hero pilot” was able to land the plane on the highway, navigating through vehicles and only striking one, causing just minor damage.
Fire officials credited the pilot with saving the lives of the two passengers aboard the plane.
Exeter Township Police told WFMZ Channel 69 that the 22-year-old pilot, Travis Robbins, saved the lives of his passengers after the engine on his Cessna 182 failed at about 4,000 feet.
The pilot was able to land the plane safely on on Route 422 after navigating his way around vehicles, police told WFMZ. The small plane struck one car traveling on Route 422, but caused only minor damage to the vehicle, according to police.
No one was injured in the incident.
The police told WFMZ that the pilot said he and his friends were returning from a day trip to New Hampshire, where he flew to log some hours behind the plane’s controls.
Police contacted federal authorities about the emergency landing. The plane was towed from Route 422 and police reopened the highway around midnight.
Exeter Township Police posted this message on the department’s Facebook page: “Well done young man!” with the hashtag #ExeterSully, referring to Capt. Sully Sullenberger, the former U.S. Airways pilot who safely landed his Airbus A320 on the Hudson River in New York City in 2009.