A small plane that crash-landed in the Androscoggin River in Topsham on June 16 has been plucked from the water, according to the insurance company behind the recovery.
The small plane that crash-landed in the Androscoggin was recovered from the river by insurance company Avemco Friday, June 21. Courtesy of the Topsham Police Department
Avemco, a Maryland-based aircraft insurance company, removed the 1947 fixed-wing, single-engine Aeronca 7AC from the Androscoggin River Friday, June 21, according to a police report filed by Sgt. Mathew Bowers. He watched the company demolish the plane at the Pejepscot Boat Launch.
The plane, owned by Anthony Pringle of Durham, sustained heavy damage, including a crushed engine cowling, broken windscreen, and bent left wing and supports.
“What we were told was they put a couple of balloons [or] something to float [the plane] up and then towed it back over to the boat launch right over by Lisbon,” said Marc Hagan, Topsham police chief.
Pringle told Topsham police Sgt. Mark Gilliam that he took off from the former Brunswick Naval Air station and flew around the area for 45 minutes. Then, at an altitude around 500 feet, Pringle lost engine power after turning to head back to Brunswick and could not get the engine to restart after two attempts, he told police. He made an emergency landing in the Androscoggin River and got out of the plane.
A pair of nearby kayakers picked Pringle up after the plane sank in 17 feet of water. Pringle was taken to Mid Coast Hospital and treated for minor injuries.
Pringle is a former military pilot who used his previous training to make an emergency landing on the river, according to the police report.
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection saw no sign of fuel or fluid leaks from the plane, which had about six gallons of fuel remaining when it crashed.
A plane crash-landed the morning of June 16 in the Androscoggin River in Topsham after its pilot had reported mechanical issues, according to officials. The pilot was brought to shore by two kayakers and was taken to the hospital with injuries not considered life-threatening. Topsham Fire and Rescue Department photo
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