A pilot low on fuel landed his sea plane safely at Edmonds Marina Beach Friday afternoon, Edmonds police said.
According to Edmonds police spokesperson Sgt. Josh McClure, the pilot landed the plane safely at around 4:30 p.m. once he realized he was not going to be able to make it to his destination in Kenmore. “He had attempted to refuel up north but that location was out of fuel,” McClure said.
The police spokesperson stressed “this was a landing, not a crash,” adding the pilot was in the water with his tethered plane attempting to keep it from the rocks. There were no injuries, McClure said, and fuel was being delivered to the pilot so he could continue on to his destination.
I didn’t know C172 seaplanes were a thing. Honestly kinda want one now. Being able to land anywhere in Lake Washington or Puget Sound seems like a great safety advantage
“He had attempted to refuel up north but that location was out of fuel,” Under no circumstances should a pilot ever take off without adequate fuel. Something’s ‘not adding up here.
As a local pilot, I’ll say that running out of fuel is almost always the pilot’s fault. Fortunately, this one survived the experience without injuring any person or his airplane. Good for him, and I hope he learned something about flight planning.