Pilot And Passenger Uninjured, But The Plane Was Not So Lucky

A small plane skidded off an ice runway at Alton Bay Seaplane Base in New Hampshire Sunday, resulting in damage to the airplane's propeller and nose gear.

The plane landed on the frozen lake at the seaplane base and slid into a snowbank, according to Alton Bay Seaplane Base ice runway manager Paul LaRochelle. While the pilot and passenger were unhurt, the airplane did not fare as well. "the snowbank was just hard enough that it broke the nose gear," LaRochelle told the New Hampshire Union Leader newspaper.

The propeller was also damaged, so the single-engine Piper isn't going anywhere until repairs can be made.

Fortunately, the pilot and passenger were uninjured in the incident. LaRochelle said that the pilot was unfamiliar with the winter airstrip on Lake Winnipesaukee, and may have been going too fast and landed downwind.

LaRochelle said there was no snow on the ice Sunday morning when the accident occurred, which made the landing a little more challenging than normal. "This was someone who had never been here before," LaRochelle said.

(Image from Facebook. Not incident airplanes)

FMI: Source report