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Disabled commuter plane drops in on busy US highway

Motorists thought they had only ice and snow to deal with until this plane touched down out of the blue.

Motorists thought they had only ice and snow to deal with until this plane touched down out of the blue. Photo: AP

Drivers coping with snow squalls and black ice patches in Virginia couldn’t believe their eyes when a commuter plane dropped out of the low clouds and glided to a near perfect landing on a busy highway.

The plane had taken off less than a minute before and lost power almost immediately.

Miraculously, no vehicles were struck and there no injuries, the only damage being to a guardrail on the road’s edge and a twisted propeller, Virginia State Police said.

There were seven people on board the single-engine Cessna operated by Southern Airways Express, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The airline confirmed five were passengers in addition to two crew members.

Police identified the pilot as Ahmed Awais, 27, a Florida resident, and the passengers as four adults and a 15-year-old boy.

In a statement, the airline’s chief executive Stan Miller said no one was injured in the landing.

“We are relieved to report there were no injuries, and all passengers are safe and sound.

“We are thankful to our pilots, who did exactly what they were trained to do – to put the safety of our passengers first.”

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.

-AAP

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