Local News
Two Planes Make Emergency Landings In Fond du Lac County Over Weekend
***Photo provided by Laurie Ottery***
EAA’s Airventure starts today, Monday, July 24, 2023, and as is often the case, some mishaps happen with some of the hundreds of planes that fly into the event.
So far, Fond du Lac County has had two planes need to make emergency landings.
The first came Saturday evening when a citizen called the Fond du lac County Dispatch Center to say they saw a plane go down and heard a crash. Moments later the pilot called to say he and a passenger were involved in a plane crash in the southern part of Fond du Lac County. Multiple resources scoured the area of 49 and Hemp road which is where the original caller said they saw the plane go down.
After over a half hour of not being able to locate the plane, it was finally spotted in the area of Amity Road just east of the railroad tracks. Two men in their 70s from Texas were on their way to Airventure when the engine on their two seater, single engine plane, stopped and they crash landed in a marshy area.
The passenger was uninjured and the pilot had a non severe shoulder injury. A wing on the plane was damaged in the crash.
The second incident happened Sunday around 1:45 PM when a pilot called dispatch and said he had to make an emergency landing in a field because the plane had lost oil pressure. The location the pilot gave was about half way between Fond du Lac and Oakfield, west of River Road and south of Lost Arrow Road. The plane was able to land safely and no injuries were reported in that incident.
EAA Airventure starts today and runs through Sunday.