Plane lands safely on I-26

Mechanical problem forces Columbia pilot to use highway near Chapin as runway

By ADAM BEAM

abeam@thestate.com

A Columbia pilot turned a stretch of I-26 near Chapin into a runway Sunday afternoon after a mechanical problem in his single-engine plane forced him to land.

The plane, a Beech M35, made a smooth landing on the westbound lane about 4 p.m. It then taxied onto the shoulder, much like a car with a flat tire.

“All of a sudden, it just started sputtering,” said pilot Ron Mims, who has been flying for 37 years. “I was trying to get power to it, and I couldn’t do it, and I was losing altitude quick. So I saw a five-mile stretch here, and I put it down, just like a runway.”

About three hours later, after a mechanic and an FAA representative deemed the plane safe to fly, Mims taxied to an overpass, turned around and took off to head back to Fairfield County, where Mims landed safely at the airport.

Three people were in the plane, which flew out of Fairfield County Airport at 2 p.m. Terry Frownfelter, 59, was in the back just enjoying the ride. After practicing several maneuvers near Columbia Metropolitan Airport, Frownfelter said, they got permission to fly over Lake Murray, specifically Cedar Cove, on their way back to “wave at my wife down on the docks.”

After circling Cedar Cove twice, the plane turned back toward Fairfield County and had just crossed I-26 when the problem started.

“The engine just shut down,” Frownfelter said. “Mr. Mims, he immediately radioed Columbia and said he had to do an emergency landing on I-26, and in a matter of a few seconds he dropped a gear and, with no engine, landed it better than most airlines that I have flown with.”

State troopers, Lexington County firefighters, a Richland County forensic investigator and EMS workers arrived at the scene shortly after 4 p.m. Traffic was slowed, but not stopped, for about three hours, mostly because of curiosity. Several people slowed to take pictures and wave at television cameras.

For the takeoff, the state Highway Patrol shut down the westbound lane near the 92 mile marker. On the eastbound lane, two troopers went to exit 91 and performed a “rolling road block,” meaning the troopers drove slowly on the interstate, side by side and with lights and sirens, to clear the traffic on that side of the highway.

It took Mims about four minutes to taxi and take off, said Sgt. Kelley Hughes with the Highway Patrol.

“Really, I don’t know if it’s been done before,” he said of the takeoff.

Laura Brown, a spokeswoman with the Federal Aviation Administration, said emergency highway landings aren’t common. If pilots have an emergency, she said, they try to identify the safest place to land to ensure no damage to the plane or to anyone on the ground.

“Usually if people see a plane trying to land, they would put their brakes on,” Brown said.

Mims said the landing was one of the best he’s ever had. Frownfelter said he isn’t the type to let things like this excite him.

“I think I’m right with God, so I didn’t need to pray,” he said.

While Frownfelter said the experience hasn’t scared him from flying, his wife picked him up and drove him home.

Reach Beam at (803) 771-8405.