Mon, Mar 15, 2010
Woman Does Soft Field Landing After Running Out Of Fuel
Susan Alexandria, 27, has been arrested after allegedly stealing
a Piper Cherokee and flying it until she ran out of fuel. The
plane was found in a hayfield near Cedarville, CA, with no reported
damage.
File Photo of Piper PA-28-140
The PA-28-140 belongs to Candice Brown Elliott, Alexandria's
landlord and family friend. Elliott says she gave the young
woman five hours of basic aircraft instruction as a Christmas
present in 2008.
Elliot did not give permission for her tenant to borrow the
aircraft and said she was not ready to solo. Alexandria
likely "just pointed the nose and let the plane fly," Elliot told
The Press Democrat.
The Cherokee ran out of fuel about 250 miles northeast of the
departure point at Sonoma County Airport (STS). Alexandria
performed a soft field landing in a hayfield near Cedarville,
CA.
Modoc County newspaper writer Jean Bilodeaux, became suspicious
when the plane was found just after a woman with no car
checked into the local JnR Hotel. Bilodeaux used the plane's tail
number to track down Elliot and alert her to the theft.
"She did admit to the fact she had taken the plane," Modoc
County Undersheriff Gary Palmer said Friday after arresting
Alexandria on Thursday morning. "We found all her luggage was
still in the plane. Found her credit card. And she had the keys to
the plane in her pocket, so there wasn't much she could
say."
There has been no word on the thief's ultimate plans
or why she flew to northern California. She was
having breakfast at the time of her arrest.
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