Member Article

Runway, road ? what's the difference?

A pensioner attempting to land a plane mistook a road for the runway – only noticing his mistake when he hit a speed bump, according to a report from the Air Accidents Investigations Branch. The 68-year-old pilot believed he had found the landing strip despite noticing a kerb to the side and lamp posts to his left.

The report states: “When close to touchdown, the pilot noticed that the airfield was different from what he remembered. “Shortly after touching down, the aircraft ran over a speed bump which caused it to veer left and leave the road.”

The plane’s left wing hit a tree and its right wing was almost entirely sheared off after colliding with a lamp post. The pilot managed to escape from the wreck uninjured. We suspect he may, however, have been somewhat embarrassed.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .