Coventry, Rhode Island – July 9, 1976
On July 9, 1976, a twin-engine Piper Apache with a lone pilot aboard took off from Green State Airport in Warwick, Rhode Island, bound for Plainville, Connecticut. The purpose of the flight was to ferry the aircraft to Plainville for repairs. While in-route, one of the engines lost power and began sputtering. The pilot looked for a place to make an emergency landing and saw an open pasture surrounded by woods. The plane came in and clipped the tops of some trees at the edge of the field before crashing into the field and leaving a furrow 150 feet long before coming to rest. There was no fire after the crash, and the pilot was transported to a hospital for serious injuries.
The field where the crash took place was known (at the time) as North Field, located about one mile west of Route 102, within view of Sisson Road.
Source:
Providence Journal Bulletin, “Plane Crash Lands In Coventry Field; Lone Pilot Injured”, July 10, 1976, Page 7, with photo of crash scene.
