59-year-old pilot okay after small plane goes down near Mukwonago



MUKWONAGO -- A 55-year-old single-engine plane went down near I-43 into the river near Mukwonago. The pilot is okay. Officials say the plane was flying south along I-43 just before 2:30 Monday afternoon, and a propeller on the plane was not spinning.

Mukwonago Fire Chief Jeffrey Stien tells FOX6 News the pilot, a 59-year-old man from Racine, suffered "just a couple of cuts and bruises."

The chief says the pilot did a nice job of putting the plane down so it did not flip. "When we got on the scene, police had reported the pilot got himself out, and was standing on the shoreline, and when the plane went down, it didn't flip or anything. We brought the pilot back here and he's doing fine," Stien said. The pilot was treated at the scene for minor injuries. "He's very lucky because of the water being shallow that he didn't flip the plane over," Stien said.

The pilot said he was attempting to reach the East Troy airport, but the plane's engine shut down. The pilot chose to put the plane in the river, rather than land on I-43, as traffic was heavy. Officials reported receiving a number of 911 calls from drivers on I-43, reporting a low-flying plane near the freeway.

The plane went down approximately 400 feet off of I-43, one mile east of State Highway 83.

FOX6 News spoke with the pilot, who didn't want to go on camera after his ordeal Monday afternoon.

The Mukwonago Police Department and the FAA are investigating this incident. "What we're doing is, we are going to put some booms up, just to make sure if there is any leakage. We did use a boat to make sure the fuel was shut off. The DNR and emergency management and all of them have been contacted to come take care of the situation," Stien said.