Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Aircraft skids on runway at Friedman

Pilot escapes injury


By KATHERINE WUTZ
Express Staff Writer

A small single-engine aircraft skidded off the runway at Friedman Memorial Airport on Monday afternoon, resulting in no injuries to the lone pilot.

Airport Manager Rick Baird said the plane, a Maule M-6, was approaching the runway from the south when the pilot lost control of the craft.

The plane was what Baird called a "tail-dragger," a small plane with stationary landing gear and a small wheel on the tail that touches the ground upon touchdown.

"Those types of aircraft are very susceptible to crosswinds or changes in the wind," Baird said, though he added that he could not speculate as to the cause of this incident.

The plane suffered a propeller strike and damage to the right wing. The pilot was uninjured, though Wood River Fire & Rescue responded to the scene.

"Anytime there is an incident here, everyone is paged," Baird said. "Sometimes they don't make it as far as the north gate, but they always respond."

Baird did not identify the pilot, but said the person has a hangar at Atlantic Aviation.

Katherine Wutz: kwutz@mtexpress.com




 Local Weather 
Search archives:


Copyright © 2024 Express Publishing Inc.   Terms of Use   Privacy Policy
All Rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Express Publishing Inc. is prohibited. 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.