LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) – A plane skidded off the runway and through the fence at Bowman Field Tuesday, leaving its nose and wing damaged.
Two men were aboard the Piper Archer four-seater and officials say neither were injured.
They’re calling it an aborted takeoff, which means the pilot was preparing to gain altitude and airport authorities say he may have changed his mind at the last second.
“Obviously the aircraft didn’t have enough runway likely and slid off the end of the runway and came to rest here on Pee Wee Reese,” Natalie Chaudoin of the Louisville Regional Airport Authority said.
Neighbor Max Duke ran out of his house.
“That is kind of scary to think about – that it just goes off the runway like that,” he said.
Firefighters say both men were already out of the plane when they arrived, walking away unhurt. The plane was leaking fuel from one of the wings after the crash.
“We cleaned up the remaining few gallons that were on the ground,” Major Phillip Marchegion said.
The Louisville Fire major said no other cars on Pee Wee Reese Road were involved.
David Wall has lived near Bowman Field for 26 years and says this isn’t the first time he’s seen a plane crash in the area.
“There are quite a few people that come through this little strip here, so it actually is a miracle that nobody did get hit,” he said. It’s happened at least three of four times that I know of. You can hear the plans coming over all the time but you don’t actually hear the impact or anything. I’ve never heard the impact.
The FAA has been notified and will investigate.
