Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

U.S. agency probes blimp emergency landing in Philadelphia neighborhood

Published 05/21/2016, 03:25 PM
Updated 05/21/2016, 03:25 PM
© Reuters. A deflated blimp is seen after an emergency landing at a construction site in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

© Reuters. A deflated blimp is seen after an emergency landing at a construction site in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

(Reuters) - The emergency landing of a blimp near a highway in a Philadelphia neighborhood is under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration, an agency official said on Saturday.

The blimp lost power before the emergency landing on Friday, FAA spokesman Rick Breitenfeldt said in an email. Two people were on board but they were not injured in the landing at about 7 p.m. local time in an open area near a major highway.

Lt. David Bonk, a Philadelphia police officer in a helicopter tactical unit, posted a Twitter message with an aerial photo of the blimp lying mostly deflated in what appeared to be a construction zone.

"Not something #TacAir sees everyday," Bonk said on Twitter.

"The blimp had a hard landing, had engine problems, it was overheating," Ray Evers of the Philadelphia Police Department told reporters, according to video from local television station NBC 10.

A Philadelphia police representative did not immediately return calls for comment.

Breitenfeldt could not immediately say which company was operating the blimp, which was displaying advertising and came down in Fishtown, a neighborhood that historically was the working-class center of a large fishing industry and has many restaurants and music venues.

© Reuters. A deflated blimp is seen after an emergency landing at a construction site in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The blimp, which had been flying over the Delaware River earlier in the evening, was captured on video descending over the highway and striking a concrete barrier with its passenger capsule, according to NBC 10.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.