Helicopter Makes Emergency Landing
An emergency helicopter landing on a baseball field at Middletown High School North this morning doubtlessly avoided a serious accident and showed the professionalism of local officials at both the township and school system
Middletown Police were notified by officials at Middletown High School North at around 9:30 this morning that a helicopter had made a landing on the school campus.
Responding Police found a commercial passenger helicopter had touched down on the field at the rear of the school, adjacent to Marvin Road.
The helicopter, operated by Zip Aviation of Caldwell had experienced an in-flight issue where an indicator light had come on. There were no passengers on the helicopter, and the pilot, who is not being identified at this time, observed the field and determined it would be safe to make the emergency landing.
There were no students or faculty on the field or the surrounding areas. Middletown Twp. Public Schools Superintendent Jessica Alfone said, “This incident is obviously an unusual one. Our school’s faculty and staff acted swiftly to confirm that no students or other personnel were harmed. The incident had no impact on class scheduling, and we are not anticipating any interference with dismissal or after school activities. We are thankful that the pilot was not harmed.”
Chief of Police R. Craig Weber stated, “This incident demonstrates both the professionalism and close working relationship between the Middletown school district and our Police, Fire and Emergency Medical Services and our collaborative effort to quickly respond to this unanticipated emergency.” Police notified the New Jersey State Police at the Regional Operations & Intelligence Center (NJ ROIC), who then notified the FAA and the NTSB.
