Information from the Flightradar24 website indicated the plane is a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan and was headed for Lancaster, Pa. Flightradar24 indicated that the plane took off from Dulles, immediately banked to the left and was on the ground at 12:50 p.m., after about four minutes.
Police identified the plane’s captain as Ahmed Awais, 27, of Florida. The others aboard were the co-pilot and five passengers, four of them adults and the other a 15-year-old boy, police said, adding that none were hurt.
The plane was cleared for departure at Dulles by air traffic controllers before the pilot came on the radio, declaring, “Mayday mayday,” according to audio archived by LiveATC.net.
“We are on the ground,” the pilot then said.
“Understand you are on the ground,” a controller replied. “We are dispatching emergency services to your location.”
“All passengers and pilots are alive and well,” the pilot said by radio.
The aircraft was identified as Southern Airways Express Flight 246, a regularly scheduled flight for the commuter airline. First responders from Loudoun County and the state police were managing the scene, and Dulles remained open for takeoffs and landings.
Police said the plane landed safely on the parkway without striking any vehicles and that the only damage was to the aircraft and to a guardrail.
“We are relieved to report there were no injuries, and all passengers are safe and sound,” Stan Little, chief executive of Southern Airways, said in a statement. “We are thankful to our pilots, who did exactly what they were trained to do — to put the safety of our passengers first.”
Little added, “We are working closely with the authorities to thoroughly investigate the situation, and we will take all necessary precautions to ensure the safety and security of our passengers and our fleet.”
The HuffPost reported in October that pilots were quitting Southern Express because they were being pressured to fly in bad weather or under questionable maintenance circumstances, and that Southern had sued roughly 80 pilots for breach of contract. The article said the airline had “only a few dozen aircraft and around 300 pilots.”
The Virginia Department of Transportation said road traffic was being rerouted off the southbound parkway lanes and onto Yardley Ridge Drive, then onto Arcola Mills Drive and back onto the southbound parkway.
Authorities said Friday’s emergency landing is being investigated by the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board.
Danny Nguyen contributed to this report.
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