Engine failure forces training aircraft to land on NH near Trichy

A single-engine Cessna aircraft on a training sortie made an emergency landing on the Trichy-Pudukottai national highway, close to a residential place, creating panic, on Thursday.

The pilot and the trainee pilot had a miraculous escape, but the aircraft suffered damage to its nose. The pilot and the trainee were admitted to hospital for a check-up.

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According to officials, the aircraft owned by the Salem-based Ekvir Flying Club, on its way to Chennai, developed a snag, and it was an engine failure that forced the pilot to crash land on the national highway in the morning.

Road users and the residents nearby gathered at the spot in large numbers, and police arrived shortly.

The landing of the flight at an unusual place, that too on a highway, aroused public curiosity, with many taking photographs of the aircraft.

Though the pilot had attempted to land the aircraft at Trichy airport, he could not, owing to a technical snag. Residents who saw the aircraft flying low witnessed fuel leaking.