The westbound lanes of Interstate 70 near Grain Valley were closed Friday morning after an airplane landed on the highway (Picture: FOX 4)
A pilot who was allegedly drunk has been arrested after landing a small aircraft on a highway as he apparently ran out of fuel.
John Seesing, 35, was flying a Piper Cherokee single-engine aircraft toward Wheeler Downtown Airport in Kansas City when was forced to make an emergency landing on Interstate 70, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Seesing, who was traveling from Florida to Missouri, radioed in before touching down and hitting a guardrail. He suffered minor injuries and was the only passenger on board, and did not hit any vehicles.
Highway patrol officials at the scene found Seesing to be ‘intoxicated’. He was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated or impaired, felony possession of a controlled substance, felony unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of less than 10 grams of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and careless actions, the Kansas City Star reported.
Seesing, of Prairie Village, Kansas, was transported to a local hospital for treatment for minor injuries.
He received a student pilot certificate in January 2020 and was not allowed to fly with passengers.
Highway crews spent about three hours towing the plane and cleaning up debris.
Seesing had prior traffic violations including excessive speeding and driving without a valid license in 2017, public records show.
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