Emergency averted at Ellen Church Field

Cresco - Mitchell Gossman of Saint Cloud, Minn. praised Cresco Police Officer Troy Brandau and Cresco Airport Manager Clair Pecinovsky for being there for him and another pilot after they were forced to land at Ellen Church Field on Feb. 23.
He sent a note to Mayor Mark Bohle explaining his troubles. “I had to do an emergency landing at your airport after a mayday call to Rochester Approach Control on Sunday because of an engine problem. They called the police and the airport manager to check on me. I successfully landed at your airport, which was the nearest at the time.”
Pecinovsky affirmed, “I got a call from the Rochester Airport that a small plane was having problems with the engine. Instead of traveling, they landed as a pre-caution. I live four miles away, and I got a call at the stop light that he landed safely. He had gotten the plane running again and was able to land.
“After talking to his mechanic, he didn’t want to fly in the dark.”
Gossman wrote, “Officer Brandau bent over backwards trying to find me transportation someplace so I could get a rental car to get home. I didn’t think it was wise to fly that evening until my plane engine was inspected.
“Clair was so nice and helpful. It didn’t surprise me a bit when he offered to drive me to Rochester to rent a car at the airport. I hated to accept and put him out on a Sunday, but I had no alternative, and I am deeply in his debt.”
On Monday and Tuesday, a mechanic from Decorah found the problem and had it fixed. Gossman returned on Thursday to finally fly home.
“This is Midwest kindness at its finest. Thanks for the hospitality from you folks,” Gossman finished.
Bohle told Council about the incident during the March 2 meeting. “I’m sure we wouldn’t have heard anything about this from Brandau or Clair,” implying neither would want recognition for helping a stranger.
Pecinovsky said of the episode that it wasn’t the first big or little emergency that has taken place at the airport. He has helped pilots change a flat tire on the plane or given them a ride someplace in town.
 
Fatal crash
He did recall the fatal accident that took place on July 19, 2006. At that time, Harvey Koshatka was the manager of the airport, and Pecinovsky, who was employed at Donaldson Company at the time, was learning the ropes. 
A Cessna Citation Encore attempted to land around 11 a.m., with two pilots (Clyde Lewis and William Eisner, both from Jackson, Miss.) and two passengers (Johnny Fayard of Mississippi and Robert Paulk of Alabama).
Pecinovsky remembers a storm had just gone through the area, and it was windy. It is believed the plane was having some problems and tried to land with the wind. The pilot clipped the lights and fence at the end of the runway. 
According to the Times Plain Dealer of July 26, 2006, “Witnesses said the plane then struck the south ditch of Highway 9, soared into the sky and subsequently crashed, nose first, in the cornfield on the north side of Highway 9, coming to rest in a small outcrop of trees [just east of the Gretchen Laub homestead].”
The two pilots were killed, and the passengers were seriously injured.
A year later, a ceremony was held when Eisner’s daughter, Lisa Westley, dedicated a memorial bench in her father and Lewis’ memory. The bench was placed and is still located at the Cresco Welcome Center.
The area can be thankful that the incident on Feb. 23 was a minor problem and not a major crash, such as what occurred 13-and-a-half years ago.

Cresco Times

Phone: 563-547-3601
Fax: 563-547-4602

Address:
Cresco TPD
214 N. Elm Street
Cresco, IA 52136

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