Airport worker stole plane and threatened to crash in Tupelo; eventually landed and arrested
TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) – An airport worker stole a plane in Tupelo and threatened to crash it into a Walmart store.
The situation began at approximately 5 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 3.
“TPD was notified that a pilot of an airplane (possibly King Air type) was flying over Tupelo. The pilot has made contact with E911 and is threatening to intentionally crash into Wal Mart on West Main,” the Tupelo Police Department reported at 6:37 a.m.
Tupelo Police Chief John Quaka said the pilot, Cory Patterson of Shannon, stole the plane, called 911 and threatened to crash into the Walmart store on West Main Street.
Image of the plane near the Toyota plant in Blue Springs, Mississippi. Source: William Rakestraw.
Quaka said Patterson has previous flight instruction but doesn’t believe he’s a licensed pilot.
Patterson works for Tupelo Aviation which is at the Tupelo Regional Airport. The police chief said Patterson has access to planes.
Negotiators made contact with the pilot and convinced him to land at the airport.
However, Patterson did not know how to land the plane. The police chief said another pilot tried to help Patterson land the plane.
Patterson tried to land but aborted the landing about 100 feet from the ground and traveled northwest.
A few hours later, the plane landed in a field in Benton County, which is about 40 miles northwest of Tupelo. He was taken into custody.
The Tupelo Police Department is charging Patterson with grand larceny and making a terrorist threat. He may face federal charges.
Watch a recap of the news conference in the video at the top of this article or open this link.
WTVA reporter Bronson Woodruff was one of the first people near the scene of the landing. Watch his live recording below or open this link.
