Pilots Forget to Put Down Landing Gear

A twin-engine plane crash landed on its belly at the Eastman-Dodge airport after the two people on board forgot to put down the landing gear. The Georgia Aviation Technical College plane slid to a halt after scraping down the runway around 12:45 p.m. Wednesday, Eastman Fire Chief Carl Johnson said. "They didn't know they had a problem until they touched down," Johnson said. An intern flight instructor and his teacher were practicing single-engine landing and forgot to lower the landing gear, said Johnny Payne, public affairs director with the college. No one was hurt in the incident. The plane received only minor damage, Johnson said. Payne credited the intern's quick thinking when he noticed the landing gear was still up, saying the pilot kept the plane level and did not panic. ...via