By SCOTT HOLLIFIELD
Rescuers used a boat to reach the pilot of a powered parachute that went down on an island on Lake James Wednesday morning.
Shortly before 10 a.m., McDowell County 911 received a report of a possible plane crash off Yancey Road near Big League Camp. As more information came in, first responders determined that it was a powered parachute, sometimes called a motorized parachute or paraplane. The craft had gone down on one of the Lake James islands.
Rescuers launched a boat from Burnett’s Landing, located the pilot and brought him to shore. He was not injured.
The pilot declined to speak to The McDowell News, but he told paramedics he was flying at around 1,000 feet when he experienced mechanical difficulty and went down on the island.
First responders were still on the scene at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday helping the pilot bring the aircraft back to shore.
According to Wikipedia, typical power parachutes can fly about three hours before refueling. Many of the rigs are classified as ultralight, which means they don’t require a license or flight instruction.
