Imagine driving on the highway, enjoying the trip and minding your own business when a plane suddenly appears ahead of you and uses the road as runway, how would you react?
Photo credit: Twitter / State Trooper Johnna Batiste
Washington State Trooper Johnna Batiste was just cruising along the way, patrolling the streets when the plane suddenly came into view and moved to land on the roadway. The single propeller KR2 plane experienced fuel system malfunction in Pierce County in the state of Washington, US.
Photo credit: Twitter / State Trooper Johnna Batiste
Thankfully, the pilot was able to steer the plane towards the highway and most likely crossed his fingers that no other vehicle with be in the way as it taxied on the road. Whew!
Photo credit: Twitter / State Trooper Johnna Batiste
Trooper Batiste was actually at the right place at the right time because he had no prior knowledge of the plane’s trouble in the air. Seeing the plane flying so close to the ground and trying to land, Batiste immediately make a u-turn and turned on his sirens and lights to clear the traffic so the pilot could safely land the malfunctioning plane.
Photo credit: Twitter / State Trooper Johnna Batiste
The plane was actually in communication with McChord Air Force Base for some time but lost the connection. It was really so lucky that Trooper Batiste was there to help him clear the road in time.
Photo credit: Twitter / State Trooper Johnna Batiste
The video from Trooper Batiste’s dashcam shows him seeing the plane, making a swift u-turn, and following the plane as fast as he could while warning the other motorists by turning his lights and sirens on.
Photo credit: Twitter / State Trooper Johnna Batiste
A lot of netizens had a good laugh as the plane was finally able to make a full stop just before reaching the intersection, at a red light! Many joked that it was good the plane didn’t run the red light or it would have more violations as it was ‘speeding’ and ‘flying’ on the road. LOL.
Photo credit: Twitter / State Trooper Johnna Batiste
Watch the video here:
Trooper Thompson’s dash cam video capturing this morning’s events! Great job by the pilot and trooper! pic.twitter.com/7X0uWYJ9fc
— Trooper Robert Reyer (@wspd1pio) August 1, 2019
What is a State Trooper?
A state trooper is a police officer who works on a higher jurisdiction at the state level. They are also known as Highway Patrol Officers because they are the ones in charge to patrol state and federal highways. They sometimes work in coordination with the local police jurisdictions.