Flight school plane makes emergency landing on Interstate 77, SC county says

A small airplane from the Fairfield County Airport flight school, S&S Aviation, made an emergency landing Thursday evening, according to officials from Fairfield County.

The plane, built in 1968, experienced a mechanical failure around 6:45 p.m. and safely landed in the median of Interstate 77 at mile marker 36. There were two passengers aboard, Fairfield County spokesman Gene Stephens said, one of which was a flight school instructor. No one was injured.

“The plane was fine, it landed very clean,” Stephens said.

Fairfield County first responders and the South Carolina Highway Patrol worked with the Federal Aviation Administration to remove the plane and bring it back to the airport. The agencies took the wings off of the plane to transport it via a trailer, Stephens said.

Stephens said the emergency landing did not cause any traffic delays.

Fairfield County will share more details as they become available.

This story was originally published June 21, 2024 at 9:47 AM.

Alexa Jurado

The State

Alexa Jurado is a news reporter for The State covering Lexington County and Richland County schools. She previously wrote about the University of South Carolina and contributes to this coverage. A Chicago suburbs native, Alexa graduated from Marquette University and previously wrote for publications in Illinois and Wisconsin. Her work has been recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists, the Milwaukee Press Club and the South Carolina Press Association.