Authorities are investigating after a pilot reported his plane was damaged by what he believed to be a gunshot while landing at Gardner Municipal Airport in Massachusetts on Monday.
Authorities are investigating after a pilot reported his plane was damaged by what he believed to be a gunshot while landing at Gardner Municipal Airport in Massachusetts on Monday.
According to Massachusetts State Police, the pilot reported that he believed the single-engine Cessna 172 was hit by a gunshot. After landing it was determined that the plane's gas tank was damaged and leaking, but troopers said they could not immediately confirm the damage was caused by a bullet.
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No injuries have been reported.
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Gardner Aviation Services owner Dominic Scalera shared video of the plane leaking fuel after it landed. He said the pilot and co-pilot were a student and teacher who were practicing. It was when the plane started to come down for a landing that it was hit - approximately 500 feet above the ground.
"It's insane to be shooting a gun at random things and not a target or an animal – it's pure stupidity," said Scalera.
Scalera said it was his men who found the bullet inside the gas tank.
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"He heard a ding in the airplane like a seatbelt came off and saw fuel...mechanics went to the aircraft and found a bullet in the airplane," he told NBC10 Boston and NECN.
The Worcester County District Attorney's Office and FAA are investigating, as is the Templeton Police Department.
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