MOHAVE COUNTY, Ariz. — A single engine plane was forced to make an emergency landing Monday after the pilot smelled something burning and the cabin filled with smoke.
“(We) got a report of a plane down from a passerby on I-15,” Mohave Country Sheriff’s Deputy Brian Stock said. “That it was north of I-15 in the fields. By the time we were responding, the pilot had actually called in.”
The pilot, San Diego resident Dylan Tobias, said he was working on his commercial flight training.
“I was doing a required flight that had to be at least 250 nautical miles away from your home airport,” Tobias said, adding that he was traveling with his father, Eric. “We went up to St. George, stayed in Zion for a day and we were going to fly back to San Diego today.”
The plane, a 1980 Cessna 172P, was headed to San Diego from the St. George Regional Airport.
“They left St. George,” Beaver Dam Fire Chief Jeff Hunt said, ‘and all of a sudden they could smell electrical, the cabin filled up (with smoke) so he just headed down.”
Dylan Tobias was philosophical about the hard landing.
“You get trained for this kind of thing, and to be honest, I probably could have done a better job. I’m really just happy that we’re OK and the airplane is not in too bad of shape.”
Units from the Mohave County Sherrif’s Office and the Beaver Dam Fire Department responded to the scene, followed later by representatives from the FAA and the NTSB.
St. George News videographer Sheldon Demke contributed to this report.
This report is based on preliminary information provided by law enforcement or other emergency responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.
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A small plane made an emergency landing in the desert outside of Beaver Dam Monday. The pilot and passenger were unhurt. Mohave County, Arizona, May 16, 2016 | Photo by Sheldon Demke, St. George News
A small plane made an emergency landing in the desert outside of Beaver Dam Monday. The pilot and passenger were unhurt. Mohave County, Arizona, May 16, 2016 | Photo by Sheldon Demke, St. George News
A small plane made an emergency landing in the desert outside of Beaver Dam Monday. The pilot and passenger were unhurt. Mohave County, Arizona, May 16, 2016 | Photo by Sheldon Demke, St. George News
A small plane made an emergency landing in the desert outside of Beaver Dam Monday. The pilot and passenger were unhurt. Mohave County, Arizona, May 16, 2016 | Photo by Sheldon Demke, St. George News
A small plane made an emergency landing in the desert outside of Beaver Dam Monday. The pilot and passenger were unhurt. Mohave County, Arizona, May 16, 2016 | Photo by Sheldon Demke, St. George News
A small plane made an emergency landing in the desert outside of Beaver Dam Monday. The pilot and passenger were unhurt. Mohave County, Arizona, May 16, 2016 | Photo by Sheldon Demke, St. George News
A small plane made an emergency landing in the desert outside of Beaver Dam Monday. The pilot and passenger were unhurt. Mohave County, Arizona, May 16, 2016 | Photo courtesy of Chief Jeff Hunt, St. George News
A small plane made an emergency landing in the desert outside of Beaver Dam Monday. The pilot and passenger were unhurt. Mohave County, Arizona, May 16, 2016 | Photo courtesy of Chief Jeff Hunt, St. George News
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2016, all rights reserved.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
"I wrote my first word when I was very young. I enjoyed this so much I decided to write many more words."
A native of Pacific Palisades, Calif., Ric was bitten by the news bug as a staff writer and associate editor of the Palisades High School Tideline. After school he entered the media as a radio personality, both playing music and reporting news. Ric moved to St. George in the 1980s and was the morning personality on all three major AM stations in town. An avid amateur radio operator, Ric is looking for a good band to play in, as he plays keyboards, bass and guitar. Ric, who currently is working on developing a lifestyle that doesn't require his presence, lives in the center of St. George with his partner Terri, two snoring dogs and too many neurotic cats.
Wow! This made the Phoenix news, that’s how I found out about it. I live on the north side of I-15 in BD. Didn’t know a thing about it. Thanks for the excellent report and photos.
very lucky to be over such a smooth patch of open ground..
Landing gear intact, prop not bent. Just a banged up wheel fairing. I’d give it a 9/10 for forced landings in creosote.
Wow! This made the Phoenix news, that’s how I found out about it. I live on the north side of I-15 in BD. Didn’t know a thing about it. Thanks for the excellent report and photos.