A single-engine airplane registered to an owner in Norwalk was landed by the passenger at the airport in Martha’s Vineyard on Saturday after the pilot suffered a medical emergency. The airplane, a Piper PA-46-500TP Meridian with six seats was en route to Martha’s Vineyard from Westchester County Airport at White Plains.
The 68-year-old female passenger was reported to have assumed control of the airplane when the pilot became incapacitated. She landed the airplane with the landing gear retracted on a grass area near the runway.
The Martha’s Vineyard Airport was closed after the accident. The airplane received substantial damage but there was no post-crash fire. The pilot was reported to be 79 years old. Both the pilot and passenger were taken to a hospital in Boston.
The airplane was registered to Access Yacht Sales Inc., c/o R. Bonnist, at an address is Norwalk, according to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records. The turboprop airplane was manufactured in 2006. Both the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
CNN produced the following video report on the accident.
