Trees Catch Plane That Was Too Little And Cute To Gain Altitude

Just a little guy of a plane managed to get tangled in some trees after failing to gain altitude following an aborted landing last week. The Cessna 150 crashed while trying to land at the equally tiny Banks Airport on Swan Island in Maine on June 25.

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Being in Maine, Banks Airport is naturally surrounded by a million trees (and, if you know anything about New England, a million bugs.) Swan Island is blanked in Eastern White Pine, according to Central Maine, which appears to be the trees that the Cessna crashed into. These trees can live hundreds of years and grow up to 150 feet, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. They provide a sturdy place for a sleepy Cessna to grab a quick snooze.

a plane crashes into trees after it failed to gain altitude when taking off from Banks Airport Maine

While the crash landing seemed gentle—and certainly was when compared to hitting the, you know, ground—the aftermath proved it was anything but, according to News Center Maine:

Meghan Joyce was the witness who took the initial footage of the crash. She told Fox 22 News that the pilot seemed shaken, but unharmed:

“He said he was trying to land and realized he couldn’t and was trying to take back off,” said Joyce.

Joyce told us she first went outside when she thought the plane was doing touch and go landing maneuvers.

When the crash occurred, Joyce says she immediately ran towards the scene of the crash and called 911, saying, “Did you know your phone automatically calls 911 if you scream it while running?”

After making her way through the trees, she said the pilot climbed out and appeared to only have a broken nose.

“When I got there he was trying to get out,” said Joyce. “He said he was fine. I was more worked up than he was, he was like, ‘I’m fine, I’m fine, calm down I’m good.’ He walked out of the plane, crawled out of it, and walked away from it.”

The Federal Aviation Administration says the plane is registered to Robert Kohut of Sag Harbor, New York, though he might live on the 80-square-mile island or own a summer home there. The crash is now being investigated by the FAA.