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The pilot, Jon
Brinkerhoff, made the emergency landing of a 1970 single-engine
Cessna just after 7 a.m. in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 84
near the Boise Airport, as motorists dialed 911, said Kelsie
Massolio, dispatcher with Idaho State Police.
No injuries were reported during the incident, Massolio said.
Brinkerhoff was flying cargo from Washington state to Boise and
was on his final approach to the airport in Idaho's capital when
he belly-landed the Cessna on the roadway, according to Idaho
State Police.
State police said two right lanes of the eastbound interstate
were blocked for two hours, during which time the plane was
removed from the roadway.
The 30-year-old pilot from Westminster, Colorado, later told
authorities he was unable to engage the landing gear when the
aircraft experienced what he believed to be engine failure,
Idaho troopers said.
Early findings in an investigation under way by state police and
the Federal Aviation Administration suggest Brinkerhoff
neglected to tap a second fuel tank after the first one emptied,
Massolio said.
A Boise man towing a boat behind his truck accidentally clipped
the left wing of the aircraft before driving on. The man, Dao
Nguyen, 65, later reported the crash to authorities.
"We don't know why he left the scene. Maybe he didn't know he
hit it and found out when he got home," Massolio said.
(Reporting by Laura Zuckerman in Salmon, Idaho; Editing by Eric
M. Johnson and Sandra Maler)
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