A $500,000

vintage aircraft crashed early Wednesday evening at Falcon Field while

attempting to land, but the pilot and passenger received minor injuries

according to emergency officials.

The plane was

part of the National Air Tour exhibition, which has brought a number of

vintage aircraft to Peachtree City on a multi-city tour of the United

States that is underwritten by the Ford Motor Company.

It was fortunate

the plane didn't catch fire because it was carrying 200 gallons of aviation

gas, said Peachtree City Fire Chief Stony Lohr.

Flight operations

at Falcon Field were suspended until the wreckage could be removed from

the runway at about 10:45 p.m., Lohr said, noting that the Federal Aviation

Administration is investigating the crash. Emergency crews responded to

the scene at 6:29 p.m., Lohr said.

The pilot and

passenger declined a trip to the hospital to get checked out, Lohr said.

"They were more worried about their aircraft."

The plane,

dubbed the Miss Veedol, was a replica of a single-wing aircraft that made

a long-distance trip from Japan to the United States back in 1931, Lohr

said. The plane can hold 900 gallons of aviation fuel, he added.

"It's

a flying gas tank," Lohr said.

The Air Tour,

which is underwritten by the Ford Motor Company, was originally scheduled

to leave Falcon Field Thursday, but the decision was made to stay until

Friday morning to avoid Hurricane Isabel which could have brought rough

weather to their next stop in South Carolina.

Back

to News Home Page |