Sightseeing Plane Makes Forced Landing On Beach

SOUTH WELLFLEET – No one was hurt when a sightseeing plane from Chatham Airport made a forced landing on a remote part of the outer beach Sunday afternoon.

The single-engine Cessna 172D, operated by Stick‘n Rudder Aero Tours, had a pilot and two passengers aboard at the time of the unplanned landing at about 3:45 p.m. The pilot told officials that the aircraft experienced engine issues, forcing him to put down on a remote stretch of beach between Nauset Light and Marconi Beach near the Eastham town line.

Tim Howard, president of the charter company and Chatham Airport manager, said the pilot reported experiencing a loss of power in the aircraft.

“The pilot made a skilled off-airport landing and he and two passengers were unhurt and did not require medical treatment,” Howard wrote in a statement emailed to The Chronicle. “The aircraft suffered damage to the nose wheel and the propeller, but there were no hazardous materials spilled.”

A news release from the Wellfleet Police Department indicated that the aircraft had taken off from Chatham about 15 minutes earlier.

According to federal records, the aircraft was built in 1963. Planes used to transport paying passengers are required to be inspected after each 100 hours of flight time.

The aircraft was removed from the beach late Sunday night; park rangers towed the plane about a mile and a half south along the beach, where it was partially disassembled. A professional tow service contracted by the plane’s owner towed the aircraft up the path at Nauset Light Beach. A Cape Cod National Seashore spokesperson confirmed that the crash did not disturb any sensitive natural resources. The aircraft is now back at Chatham Airport.

Howard said his company is fully cooperating with the Federal Aviation Administration’s investigation of the incident. Assisting with the investigation is MassDOT Aeronautics, National Park Service rangers at the Cape Cod National Seashore, and police and fire officials from Eastham and Wellfleet.