Photo: CBS San Francisco
One small engine had to land on a busy freeway after experiencing issues with the fuel pump, and miraculously, no one was hurt. The pilot showed such skill that there was even zero damage all around.
In what can only be dubbed a happy-ending-type of story, traffic on a San Leandro freeway came temporarily to a still over the weekend, when a single-engine Cessna 172 had to make an emergency landing in the middle of traffic.
The moment of the landing was captured on the dashcam of Eric and Brandi Geer, who were traveling on the freeway at the time. They were equally shocked and in awe at the way the pilot managed to land the plane.
“He was able to hold that plane up until all the cars got out of the way and then he landed it and he immediately went to the side,” Brandi tells CBS San Francisco in an interview at the scene.
Indeed, in the footage (which you can also find at the bottom of the page), you can see the plane waiting for a gap in traffic before landing. After touchdown, the pilot steered the plane to the shoulder, thus making sure the risk of collision was minimal.
“You hear about it on TV, you see it sometimes and you’re like, ‘That would never happen!’ There are things that happen that are beyond your control, and planes do fall out of the sky,” Brandi adds.
Her husband, Eric, says that he did his best to slow traffic down, since they were coming after the plane. He wanted to give the pilot time enough to get off the freeway and to safety, so he used his horn and lights, and did some swerving to make sure the other drivers understood there was an obstacle on the road up ahead.
The plane was eventually lifted on a flatbed truck and carried to Hayward Airport, where it should have landed in the first place. The pilot and its passenger weren’t injured. The plane landed with zero damage to itself, the cars or the freeway.
Minutes before, the pilot had reported issues with the fuel pump, but an investigation into the causes of the incident is underway.
The moment of the landing was captured on the dashcam of Eric and Brandi Geer, who were traveling on the freeway at the time. They were equally shocked and in awe at the way the pilot managed to land the plane.
“He was able to hold that plane up until all the cars got out of the way and then he landed it and he immediately went to the side,” Brandi tells CBS San Francisco in an interview at the scene.
Indeed, in the footage (which you can also find at the bottom of the page), you can see the plane waiting for a gap in traffic before landing. After touchdown, the pilot steered the plane to the shoulder, thus making sure the risk of collision was minimal.
“You hear about it on TV, you see it sometimes and you’re like, ‘That would never happen!’ There are things that happen that are beyond your control, and planes do fall out of the sky,” Brandi adds.
Her husband, Eric, says that he did his best to slow traffic down, since they were coming after the plane. He wanted to give the pilot time enough to get off the freeway and to safety, so he used his horn and lights, and did some swerving to make sure the other drivers understood there was an obstacle on the road up ahead.
The plane was eventually lifted on a flatbed truck and carried to Hayward Airport, where it should have landed in the first place. The pilot and its passenger weren’t injured. The plane landed with zero damage to itself, the cars or the freeway.
Minutes before, the pilot had reported issues with the fuel pump, but an investigation into the causes of the incident is underway.
Firefighters & @CHPcastrovalley at the scene of an aircraft emergency landing on WB I-580 near the 164th Ave exit in unincorporated San Leandro. Pilot & passenger are ok, no injuries. No injuries to bystanders or vehicles. No damage to plane or freeway. Cause under investigation pic.twitter.com/ZhRJXxPk5h
— Alameda County Fire (@AlamedaCoFire) August 12, 2018
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