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Jeff Wheeler / AP
Two people were on board when the single-engine plane made an emergency landing on northbound Interstate 35W in Minnesota.
The pilot of a small plane that made an emergency landing on a United States interstate has been identified as an award-winning member of the United States Aerobatics Flight Team.
The single-engine Bellanca Viking plane landed and collided with a vehicle, temporarily closing part of the highway Wednesday night (local time) in the St Paul suburb of Arden Hills, Minnesota, authorities said.
There were two people on board, KMSP-TV reported, and authorities said no injuries were reported.
The pilot was identified as Craig Gifford, 52, a Minneapolis resident and competitive aerobatic pilot, a sport that involves flying airplanes in a series of maneuvers.
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Experimental Aircraft Association spokesman Dick Knapinski said Gifford represented the United States in international competition in 2017 and 2019 on the Unlimited Aerobatic Team, which took home the bronze medal at the South African world championships in 2017. .
Jeff Wheeler / AP
No injuries were reported after the plane landed on the highway.
Knapinski said pilots take aerobatic training lessons to learn how to better maneuver planes in emergency situations, which explains how Gifford’s skills helped him achieve the “textbook emergency landing” on the interstate.
“Pilots are trained to deal with emergency engine problems and things like that if you have to make an emergency landing, so the combination of that training and certainly (Gifford’s) aerobatic training really paid off in this situation.” , said.
Gifford declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation into the incident by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation and Safety Board.
