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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Plane makes emergency landing after pilot tussles with passenger mid-air | Plane makes emergency landing after pilot tussles with passenger mid-air |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| An Australian pilot made an emergency landing after wresting back the controls of his light aircraft from an 82-year-old passenger who grabbed them mid-flight, the aircraft's charter company said. | An Australian pilot made an emergency landing after wresting back the controls of his light aircraft from an 82-year-old passenger who grabbed them mid-flight, the aircraft's charter company said. |
| Police said the man chartered the small four-seater Beechcraft Duchess plane on Monday for a business trip from the Sydney suburb of Bankstown to Cowra, a distance of about 116 miles. | Police said the man chartered the small four-seater Beechcraft Duchess plane on Monday for a business trip from the Sydney suburb of Bankstown to Cowra, a distance of about 116 miles. |
| He began acting erratically midway through the flight, moving to shut down the plane's engines and seizing the control stick, a spokesman for charter company Australia by Air told reporters. | He began acting erratically midway through the flight, moving to shut down the plane's engines and seizing the control stick, a spokesman for charter company Australia by Air told reporters. |
| The 23-year-old pilot restrained the passenger and made a distress call before safely landing the plane in a field, police said. | The 23-year-old pilot restrained the passenger and made a distress call before safely landing the plane in a field, police said. |
| "The pilot displayed excellent airmanship and skill during the landing, and we thank him for his professionalism," the company said in a statement. | "The pilot displayed excellent airmanship and skill during the landing, and we thank him for his professionalism," the company said in a statement. |
| Police inspector Mark Wall said the man was in a stable condition in hospital in Sydney, with injuries to his face. The pilot was treated for shock and discharged. | |
| It was not immediately clear what caused the man to attempt to seize the plane. Police say they are investigating the incident. | It was not immediately clear what caused the man to attempt to seize the plane. Police say they are investigating the incident. |