Sep. 22--Shortly after takeoff from Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, the 43-year-old cargo plane climbed about 300 feet and began to sink. Pilot Robert Robertson radioed "Mayday" and lined up to land on bustling Interstate 95.
As the small plane flew perilously low over restaurants and warehouses, it clipped a government building. Then the 5-ton, twin-engine aircraft flopped down in the southbound lanes, crumpled into pieces and slid off the highway on Friday afternoon.
Robertson, the only one onboard, was severely injured. The plane was mangled. And interstate traffic was snarled for hours.
Incredibly, no one was killed.
Paul Slavin, president of Monarch Air Group, the charter firm that operated the plane, credited Robertson with averting disaster.
"He's extremely experienced," Slavin said of Robertson. "He saved a lot of lives with what he did."
His assistant, Jonathan Hart, agreed.
"Knowing Bob personally, I'm sure he was looking at his options and didn't want to injure anyone driving in a car," Hart said.
Those who witnessed the accident said it was almost eerie.
Workers at Needham Re-Roofing, a company just east of the airport, saw the plane going down. They rushed to the scene.
"We saw the pilot just sitting there, and the two feet of fuselage in front of him was just gone," said Fred Allen, the company's superintendent. "It was like he was just sitting there in the road."
Robertson, 34, remained trapped in the aircraft after the accident, strapped in his seat, the frame so contorted that passers-by were unable to help. Firefighters had to extricate him from the aircraft with special tools.
The pilot then was flown to Broward General Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale for emergency surgery. He suffered head, arm and leg injuries, and was in critical condition Friday evening, authorities said.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the accident. Safety board investigator Jose Obregon couldn't say whether the 1964 Super Twin Beech 18 lost power, only that it was unable to remain aloft.
"There are many factors where a plane cannot maintain altitude," he said. "We're checking into that."
Friday's accident was the third time in the past 2 1/2 years that a twin-engine plane has taken off from Executive Airport and made an emergency landing on a roadway.
In June 2005, a DC-3 slammed down on a residential street in Fort Lauderdale, and its three occupants walked away with minor injuries. In August, a Piper Aerostar made a fiery landing on the side of Cypress Creek Road, and its three occupants also escaped with minor injuries.
In Friday's incident, the plane took off about 1:30 p.m., headed to Nassau in the Bahamas, carrying clothing, shoes and other items, Monarch Air officials said. The items were to be sold in stores, they said.
Witnesses said it climbed only a few hundred feet before it appeared to lose power. As it dropped, the plane struck the northeast corner of a Florida Department of Transportation storage building off Powerline Road just north of Commercial Boulevard. The impact left a small hole in a wall, but no one was injured, Barbara Kelleher, department spokeswoman, said.
"It was amazing that he didn't hit anything else," said Lois Bowman, Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Division chief.
The Beech 18 made a steep right turn just before slamming down on the highway and skidding around onto a grassy embankment, witnesses said. The front of the plane was destroyed, and the rest of it was scrunched.
Hart, the Monarch Air assistant, said he thinks Robertson was trying to land in an area where he wouldn't endanger cars or people.
"If he experienced a failure, the first thing on his mind would be the safety of others," he said. "It looks like he was trying to aim for the railroad or the grassy area."
Although no fire broke out, gallons of fuel spilled out, prompting a hazardous materials team to spray foam on the aircraft and highway.
The accident shut down the interstate's southbound lanes for several hours, and by late evening traffic was still jammed as workers cleaned up debris and carted away the wreckage. The northbound lanes also were backed up with onlooker delays.
Whether the plane's age played a role in the accident was not immediately known. Investigators will look at factors including how the plane was maintained and the pilot's qualifications. Monarch Air officials said the plane was well-maintained and had no indications of mechanical problems.
According to federal records, Robertson, of Fort Lauderdale, had an airline transport pilot's license and also was licensed to fly twin-engine aircraft.
The National Weather Service said a thunderstorm had been developing south of Executive Airport before the report of the crash. Investigators said they would check whether that might have contributed to the accident.
The Super Twin Beech 18 was a popular commuter aircraft in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, generally seating up to 11 passengers. Many are still in use for cargo and passenger operations.
Staff Writers Joel Marino, Michael Turnbell, Sallie James and Tiffany Ellis contributed to this report.
Ken Kaye can be reached at [email protected] or 954-385-7911.
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