MELFA, Va.- There were some tense moments at an Accomack County airport late Monday afternoon.
Virginia State Police said that aa Cessna plane had taken a 10-minute flight from Tangier Island to the airport in Melfa when its landing gear failed to deploy properly and collapsed when the plane touched down on the runway. The hull of the plane and the propeller were damaged as the plane skidded to a stop.
The pilot, 45-year-old Harry Leiser of Rome, Pa., was unaware there was a problem until the landing gear collapsed.
Leiser was not injured, according to police. There was no fuel leak and the only damage was to the aircraft, police said.