Small plane makes emergency landing on NC highway, collides with passing car, cops say

A vehicle collided with an aircraft on Interstate 840 in North Carolina after the single-engine plane made an emergency landing in the westbound lanes, according to police.

The identities of the driver and aircraft pilot have not been released.

It happened just before 8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 28, as a Beechcraft Bonanza was attempting to land at Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, about a 75-mile drive northwest from Raleigh.

The plane came down northeast of the airport near the junction of Interstate 840 and Interstate 73. The pilot made a distress call to the airport just before he landed, officials said.

“While on final approach to land at PTI the aircraft experienced engine trouble, forcing the pilot to land on I-840. Once on the ground, the pilot moved the aircraft to the right shoulder,” police said in a news release.

“The driver of a 2007 Infiniti G37 was traveling west on I-840 in the middle lane. The passenger of the aircraft exited the plane and stood on the shoulder of I-840. The driver of the 2007 Infiniti G37 swerved their vehicle to the right, running off the road, striking the passenger of the aircraft, and then colliding with the plane’s right wing.”

The person struck by the car was taken to a hospital with minor injuries and later released, police said.

Investigators say the driver who collided with the plane was not hurt.

Video shared by a passing motorist on social media shows the plane came to a stop upright, but perpendicular to the travel lanes.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the emergency landing, officials said.

This story was originally published August 29, 2024 at 6:35 AM with the headline "Small plane makes emergency landing on NC highway, collides with passing car, cops say."