Plane lands safely in emergency

A small twin engine plane, experiencing landing gear issues, made it down safely at the Holly Springs-Marshall County Airport May 28.

Rod Childers, airport manager, said the local pilot received an “unsafe gear” message on the instrument panel of his aircraft.

“I called 911, and the pilot said he had enough fuel to wait until the fire trucks arrived before he attempted to land,” Childers said.

He said emergency personnel arrived quickly. “As he started to land, the landing gear did come out but it did not lock into place,” Childers said.

Rodney Crane, chief of the Holly Springs Fire Department, said firemen were in position, if needed, when he landed.

“The plane kind of came down on one side, and he did a good job controlling it,” Crane said. “It skidded off the runway into a grass area. We saw some sparks but no fire. There was some damage to the bottom of the plane.” The pilot, who was the only occupant of the aircraft, was not injured. Also on the scene were the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department and the Red Banks Fire Department.