Pilot, 72, confused runway at Newcastle Airport for the A1 motorway
Elderly pilot, 72, confused runway at Newcastle Airport for the A1 motorway and went in to land…but realised his error while 300ft above the road
- An unnamed 72-year-old pilot was flying a Reims Cessna F172M Light Aircraft
- He mistook the A1 for a runway and descended to 300ft on 9 January 2022
- Newcastle Air Traffic Control redirected the pilot to Newcastle Airport runway
- No other passengers were onboard and there were no injuries after the incident
A new pilot, 72, mistook the A1 motorway for a runway during his first solo night flight and accidentally descended to 300ft while looking for the correct landing spot.
An investigation report found that the unnamed elderly pilot, with just 233 hours of flight experience, mistook road lights for runway lights on 9 January 2022.
He drifted his aircraft south of Newcastle International Airport and accidentally descended to around 300ft as he searched for the runway.
Realising he was flying at a lower level than intended, the pilot managed to ascend, highlighting ‘the increased risk from distraction…in situations where external visual cues are reduced’ according to the report.
An unnamed 72-year-old pilot drifted south of Newcastle International Airport as he mistook the A1 dual carriageway for a runway (image shows the pilot’s approximate track and altitude)
The pilot was able to level the Reims Cessna F172M Light Aircraft and head back towards the airfield.
Newcastle Air Traffic Control then helped the pilot find the runway and he was able to safely land the aircraft.
The pilot was on his first solo night flight and was later assisted by Newcastle Air Traffic Control to find the runway
There were no other passengers travelling onboard and no one was injured during the incident.
After a ‘debrief and a long ground brief on Newcastle features and radio procedures’, the pilot’s instructor allowed him to continue his night-flying training.
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