ALGER COUNTY, MI— More details are available about a plane that made an emergency landing on the Seney Stretch last week.
Thursday afternoon, the single-prop Pitts 12 biplane piloted by Trevor Rafferty came down on M-28 near Star Siding Road after the engine blew mid-flight. He was following the highway on his way to Marquette Sawyer Regional Airport for the Wings Over Marquette Airshow.
In a Facebook post, Rafferty says 15 minutes after he left the Luce County Airport, he started seeing puffs of smoke coming from the engine. When the cockpit started to fill with smoke, he realized the motor was burning oil. Shortly afterward the plane started to shake. There was a loud bang and the prop stopped.
Rafferty says he kept in his lane until vehicles on the Seney Stretch “got the hint” and cleared a path for him. He says he landed on the centerline and rolled to a stop without a scratch.
Afterwards, Rafferty realized a jug blew off the motor, which locked up.
The Alger County Sheriff’s Office, Munising Fire Department, Michigan State Police, and U.P. Wilderness Towing and Recovery assisted at the scene.
