Police said the pilot reported engine trouble before bringing the aircraft down on the highway near mile marker 45.6.
WEISENBERG TOWNSHIP, PA — A small plane carrying two people made an emergency landing Saturday morning on Interstate 78 in eastern Pennsylvania after the pilot reported engine problems while trying to reach a nearby airport, authorities said.
The landing happened just after 9 a.m. on the eastbound side of I-78 in Lehigh County, where traffic was moving through a busy stretch of highway near mile marker 45.6. Pennsylvania State Police said the aircraft, a 1995 Commander 114B, had taken off from Solberg in New Jersey and was headed to Indiana when trouble developed in flight. No one on the plane was hurt, and no motorists were reported injured. The incident still drew a large emergency response and shut down eastbound traffic for hours as troopers, firefighters and aviation officials secured the scene and began an investigation.
State police said troopers at the Fogelsville station got a call at about 9:19 a.m. reporting that a plane was on the interstate in Weisenberg Township. Investigators later said the single-engine aircraft was being flown by a 65-year-old Michigan man, with a 34-year-old woman from New Jersey riding as a passenger. While en route, police said, the pilot reported unknown engine problems and tried to make it to a local airport before deciding to land on the highway instead. The plane came down in the eastbound lanes near Exit 45 after missing the airport and stopping on the roadway without striking another vehicle. Police later had the aircraft towed from the interstate to a local airport. The eastbound lanes were detoured to Exit 40 at Krumsville Road in neighboring Berks County, while westbound traffic remained open.
Drivers who saw the plane descend described a moment that felt sudden and unreal. Emily Rivera, who recorded the landing on a dashboard camera and later spoke with ABC News, said she was driving from Harrisburg toward the Lehigh Valley when she realized the aircraft was dropping lower and lower in front of traffic. She said it felt like something out of a movie because the plane appeared to settle onto the road just ahead of vehicles already in motion. Another witness told local television she first thought the aircraft was flying too low, then realized it was about to pass over her. Video from the highway showed the plane lined up with the roadway as cars slowed around it, a sign of how narrowly the landing appears to have avoided a broader crash. Officials have not said how close the aircraft came to other vehicles before touching down.
What authorities know so far is limited but clear on several points. The pilot reported engine trouble. The aircraft was traveling from New Jersey to Indiana. Two people were on board. Neither was injured. Police have not said whether the problem involved total engine failure, a loss of power, fuel delivery, or another mechanical issue. They also have not publicly identified the pilot or passenger by name. The Federal Aviation Administration is leading the aviation side of the investigation, while Pennsylvania State Police and local responders handled the highway closure and initial scene. Assisting agencies included the Weisenberg Township Fire Department, Cetronia Ambulance, PennDOT, ABE Operations and Safety, and a towing company that removed the plane after troopers finished their work. By 1 p.m., all eastbound traffic had reopened, ending a detour that backed up travel on a heavily used weekend corridor.
The scene drew attention in part because highway landings are rare and dangerous even when they end without injuries. A pilot who chooses a roadway must avoid signs, guardrails, overpasses and moving traffic, then bring the aircraft down in a narrow strip meant for cars and trucks, not wings and propellers. In this case, the interstate offered a long paved path, but it was still crowded enough that witnesses immediately understood how badly it could have gone. The event also comes during a period of heightened public attention to aviation emergencies in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, making even a safe outcome feel especially tense. Officials have not said whether weather played any role, and there was no immediate indication from police that the aircraft struck debris or another object before landing. For investigators, the focus now will likely turn to the plane’s mechanical condition, maintenance history and the pilot’s actions in the minutes before touchdown.
The next steps are procedural and likely slower than the dramatic landing itself. The FAA said it is investigating, a standard move after an emergency landing involving a privately operated aircraft. Federal investigators typically review the airplane’s registration, maintenance records, route, radio communications and any witness video that helps show the aircraft’s path and condition. Depending on what inspectors find, the agency could later release preliminary details on the type of malfunction and whether additional examination is needed. Pennsylvania State Police described the engine problem as unknown, which means one of the most important questions remains unanswered. There were no criminal allegations announced Saturday, and there was no indication from police that the pilot had violated any roadway-related order beyond the emergency itself. The more immediate government work centered on clearing the highway safely, moving the aircraft off the road and preserving enough information for aviation investigators to reconstruct what happened.
By Saturday afternoon, the strongest reaction around the incident was a mix of relief and disbelief. Drivers who found themselves near the plane as it descended had gone from an ordinary highway trip to a front-row view of an emergency landing in seconds. Witness Bonnie Magrowski told local media that traffic slowed and drivers went around the aircraft with care, adding that the pilot seemed fortunate after such a risky maneuver. That sense of luck was echoed across the early coverage: a live highway, a low-flying plane, and no reported injuries on the ground or in the cockpit. The aircraft itself became the center of a quieter second act after the adrenaline passed, sitting on the interstate until crews could tow it away. Once the lanes reopened, the scene returned to normal traffic, but the investigation remained active as officials worked to answer the central question of why the plane could not make the airport.
The plane is off the highway, both occupants are safe, and federal investigators are now working to determine what caused the reported engine trouble. The next public update is expected to come as the FAA and state police release more findings from the initial investigation.
Author note: Last updated 2026-04-05.