14 DAY TRIAL // A 71-year-old pilot has landed a plane atop a sheep in Wales, but it was only the aircraft that was damaged in the accident.
The plane was brought down on Rhigos Airfield, after it experienced mechanical difficulties. Wales Online reported that the engine gave out, prompting the emergency landing.
Bernard Ridgway had to land on a field populated with sheep, and ended up atop one of them.
“Unfortunately the field contained sheep, one of which was struck by the right wing which suffered damage,” a statement by the Air Accident Investigation Branch reads.
The plane's right wing incurred dents, but the animal it stroke escaped without a scratch.
“The animal did not appear to have been injured,” the AAIB report says.
The pilot was experienced, with over 1,404 hours of flying. Neither him nor his passenger got injured.
“I think we’d know by now if the animal was seriously injured or not as the farmer would have been in contact.
“Sheep get hit all the time in Brecon and just get back up again, which is what this one did when it was hit. [...] They’re quite tough I think,” notes Keith Richards, a friend of the pilot's.
Richards, a member of the Black Mountains Gliding Club repaired the wing on the 1964-built Jodel.
“I fixed it and it’s back flying again now. [...] The plane was landed in a calm manner, which is all a pilot can do in those circumstances.
“This kind of thing doesn’t happen very often though, as what we do is usually quite safe,” he describes.
An investigation has revealed that the light plane might have gotten ice forming in its carburetor.
“We have the odd bit of damage but what happened with the sheep is very unusual,” Richards adds, speaking about the incident.