HORRY COUNTY, S.C. — A small plane made an emergency landing on a Horry County highway Sunday due to engine issues, the Federal Aviation Administration told WDPE.
Officials said the single-engine Cessna plane landed at approximately 5:30 p.m. on the Conway Bypass (Highway 22) between Highway 905 and Highway 90.
Horry County Fire Rescue said the plane was cleared from the highway before 8 p.m. Sunday.
No one was reported injured.
Someone driving by captured video of the plane approaching Highway 22 near North Myrtle beach like a runway, then touching down. John Healy, a flight instructor, saw that video.
“It’s a position that no pilot ever wants to be in,” Healy said.
Healy is the General Manager of the Academy of Aviation based at the Gastonia Municipal Airport. It’s the same airport where the plane took off Sunday afternoon.
Healy trains students in planes like the one that landed on the highway. He said when the engine stops there are no other options and often very little time to land.
“At that point, you are looking around for a place to land,” Healy said. “Straight and paved preferably.”
The area around Myrtle Beach is mostly trees and marsh, except for the bypass, which is designed to help drivers avoid the busiest parts of the Grand Strand.
Healy said the FAA tests pilots on what to do when the engine fails. The tests are conducted with a runway nearby. If a pilot does not pass, they will not be issued an FAA license.
The pilot on Sunday had to think about unsuspecting drivers on his paved path.
“Cars don’t even know he’s coming from behind them and on top of them,” Healy said.
The pilot was able to land without hurting anyone in the ground or in the plane.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
(WATCH BELOW: Pilot, passenger killed in Lake Hickory plane crash, officials say)
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