OWLS HEAD – A single-engine plane had to be towed off of a runway at the Knox County Regional Airport, Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021, following a turbulent landing.

Airport Manager Jeremy Shaw happened to be outside his office, just before noon, and witnessed the inbound rented aircraft from Southern Maine Aviation, LLC, lose control and hit a Taxiway sign on Runway 2-1. That impact removed the left landing gear. The plane came to rest a few hundred feet down into the grass, and was about 100 feet from the runway when it came to a stop, according to Shaw.

“Everyone is fine,” said Shaw, who, along with the business partner he’d been conversing with at the time, ran over to the crash zone.

As Rockland EMS spoke with the two occupants, Owls Head and South Thomaston and Rockland fire departments tended to a fuel leak in the plane. Automaster Collision Center then put the plane onto a flatbed and transported it to another airport location where it will await inspection by Portland Maine-based Flight Standards District Office, a department of the Federal Aviation Administration.

The runway remained active during cleanup of the incident; all other airplanes used the airport’s other active Runway 3-1, resulting in minimal impact for the average 15-20 planes that use the airport on a Tuesday, according to Shaw.

Warren Fire Department also responded to the call with their tanker truck, due to a temporary agreement with OHFD, which is awaiting a new replacement tanker of its own. Warren FD was cancelled en route to this incident.

Knox County Sheriff’s Office deputies also assisted.

Reach Sarah Thompson at news@penbaypilot.com