kwlf wrote:
In the USA
IMHO Europe has a lot to learn about aviation from the USA. The number of GA pilots per capita should be a good measure of that but I could only find the numbers for the USA.
Yes, we are trained to use roads as emergency landing places (in the U.S.) because they are often the best option. Around my base we’ve had two road landings in the last year, nobody would fine the pilot and news coverage is supportive, typically praising the skill of the pilot regardless of whether it exists 
I was taught that when given a choice, land in front of cars not behind them. Drivers tend to apply their brakes hard when startled…
About 15 years ago the friend and instructor who taught me that took a job ferrying a poor condition Stearman from California to Texas or someplace for restoration. I forget what broke but he landed on the freeway near El Centro, a remote area, and a local guy brought parts to help him fix it. Two Highway Patrol officers closed the road for a few minutes so he could continue on his way.
Vladimir wrote:
I was wondering how much he will be fined and if he will keep his license. In Switzerland it is illegal to try to land on a street because it threatens other people’s lives and they will prosecute you if you do so (even with no injuries or damages).
Where did you hear that? Never heard of anything like that, I know of at least two cases where a SEP has landed on roads and nothing more than the usual investigation happened.
The question in my mind is more if a road is the ideal spot as they often have obstacles you can’t necessarily see from the air.
Mooney_Driver wrote:
Where did you hear that?
FI during night VFR training. At night roads are some of the best visible places. You never know if that black spot below you is a meadow, a forest, an unlit house or a bunch of cows while on the road you know it’s at least even surface and if you are lucky you can even land on the highway in the middle lane without hitting any tree.
I’ll investigate a bit. Looks to me like a “friend of a 2nd cousin” kind of tale.
Vladimir wrote:
Think about the other side – your kids are driving in a car on the highway and suddenly without a warning a TB20 hits it from the back/top, flying faster than they are driving. You won’t be happy I am sure. I can see both sides of the argument.
Is it better to crash into a house??
The Belgian lamp posts will not prevent a landing but help make a nice night landing :-)
My southern Florida instructor strongly recommended landing on the roads – the swamps have alligators….
If a road is all you have, that’s where you land. In many places (definitely here in the L.A. basin, where this incident occurred) they are also pretty much your only option. Have to say, I thought the video was hilarious – PA28 crossing intersection – and he did it on a green light! Well done.
I’m sure there are lots of times when landing on a road is the most reasonable thing to do; whether it’s reasonable to fly an SEP over an area where the best landing spot is a busy road like this is a different question. At least it turned out well.
A google search for ‘aircraft landed on road’ shows lots of incidents, most of which have turned out quite well with no injuries and the aircraft intact. However, both the British incidents that showed up (2006, 2010) resulted in the destruction of the aircraft. Had the options been available I suspect both aircraft would have come out of a field-landing in a better state.
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/local-news/solihull-pilot-escapes-injury-after-137209
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/5191552.stm
Round here, there are hardly any roads wide enough between the hedgerows to land an aircraft and aside from a few Roman roads most minor roads wouldn’t be straight enough either – the point being that what is sensible in one place may well not be sensible in another.
