A small plane attempting an emergency landing crashed into the frigid Hudson River, where the pilot and a passenger escaped the wreckage and safely swam to shore, authorities said.
The crash occurred Monday night (local time), shortly after the single-engine Cessna 172 took off from Long Island MacArthur Airport in Ronkonkoma, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The plane's two occupants were a flight instructor and his 17-year-old student, New York state police said Tuesday.
The pilot, Liam Darcy, 31, had reported engine trouble shortly before the plane went down south of the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge. The FAA is investigating what caused the crash.
Emergency responders were dispatched to the reported crash site but initially could not locate the aircraft, the Middle Hope Fire Department reported. However, the plane was spotted a few minutes later in waters off Newburgh, about 100 kilometres north of Manhattan.
Darcy and his student were treated at a hospital for undisclosed minor injuries and later released.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul praised the efforts of the responders, calling the rescue “another miracle on the Hudson,” a reference to the January 2009 crash where a US Airways jet hit a flock of birds and lost power in both engines shortly after takeoff. Pilot Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger was hailed as a hero after he landed the powerless plane in the Hudson River and all 155 people on board were rescued.
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