Truck driver Eric Jordan was traveling on I-10 east in Escambia County, Florida, on August 3, 2026, when he saw something incredible. A plane landed on the highway around 9:55 a.m. near mile marker 14. Emily Shelton, 21, was operating the Piper PA-28 Cherokee for Pensacola Air Flight School as an instructor alongside a student during their first flight lesson, per WEAR.
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“If I hadn’t seen a shadow over my truck and slowed down, he would have been on the inside of the cab,” Eric Jordan told the news outlet. “As you see in the video, it was a close call for the truck and for the sign, but he landed; he kept it in control.”
Emily Shelton Stayed Calm and Landed the Plane
Emily Shelton contacted air traffic control to report the smell of burning oil in the cockpit. Rather than panic, she calmly explained the problem and prepared to land right on the highway. She successfully landed the plane, and no one was hurt. She told WEAR her 1300 flight hours prepared her well.
“I feel my training has prepared me exceptionally well for this moment,” Emily told WEAR. “I’ve practiced this exact scenario many times, just never thought I’d actually have to execute it in real life.”
Loved ones created a GoFundMe for Emily Shelton following her heroic landing to help pay for flight school so she can become a pilot.
“How she landed was nothing short of miraculous, as she narrowly avoided traffic and other obstacles and managed to guide the plane to the shoulder of the road, protecting her student and motorists,” the fundraiser reads. “Emily has been working as a flight instructor to build her hours while working toward becoming a pilot at a regional airline.”
They’ve raised more than $1,000 thus far.
Pilot George Siger told WEAR Emily’s landing was truly incredible.
“They were probably doing somewhere around 60, 70 miles an hour in a glide,” he said. “So yeah, that’s still pretty darn fast, especially if you hit something solid like a sign. And then you still have altitude to deal with. So it was amazing. It’s one of those things that it’s hard to believe. Yeah, that was great.”
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