PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — Christina Galbiati told reporters her kids were playing and she was drinking coffee when she saw a low-flying plane in the sky on Sunday in Florida’s Pasco County.
Michael Bailey had departed from Tampa North Aero Park in the Cessna 401B, and he crashed in a Wesley Chapel neighborhood, according to the FAA.
He was 59, according to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office.
“I think that the pilot is a hero,” Galbiati told reporters on Monday. “He knew that it was going down, and he found a perfect spot to land.”
The Cessna 401B crashed near Aldus Drive in the Grand Oaks area and caught on fire.
“He went straight in between houses, which I imagine is a pretty hard thing to do,” Galbiati said. “He landed right in between those two unfenced yards. It takes seconds to make that decision.”
There was property damage, but no one was injured. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were investigating.
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