Small plane crash lands on Penn Pike

A small plane made an emergency landing on the eastbound roadway of the Pennsylvania Turnpike just before 1pm today hitting a tractor-trailer and bouncing over a guard rail. The pilot who was flying alone was taken to a medical center in Carlisle complaining of pain in his back. There were no other injuries and there has been no major disruption of traffic, local reports say.

The incident occurred  at milemarker 207.2 in the Shippensburg/Newburg area between Carlisle and Bedford - a mountainous section of the Turnpike somewhat less heavily trafficked than segments west of Breezewood or east of Carlisle.

The truckdriver from West Virginia said he felt the plane hit and thought at first it was a car or another truck.

The plane described as experimental and kit-built was registered to an owner in Endicott NY and was flying to Atlanta GA. 

Weather conditions for flying are moderate to good - no precipitation, little wind, some cloud, temperatures mild, visibility 15km.

A heavy tow truck took the plane away about an hour after the landing.

Sometimes in cases like this owners get asked to pay for cleanup and repair costs. The Turnpike doesn't have plane landings on its toll schedule.

TOLLROADSnews 2008-12-18