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December 1, 2009

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Actor Swayze crash lands plane, walks away

Thursday, June 1, 2000 | 4:17 a.m.

The 47-year-old star of the movies "Ghost" and "Dirty Dancing" was alone in the aircraft.

Swayze was flying a 1978 twin-engine Cessna 414A from Van Nuys, Calif., to Las Vegas when he was forced to attempt an emergency landing, said John Slabes, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.

FAA monitors lost sight of him on radar at 13,000 feet around 11 a.m., and were unable to contact him by radio.

The plane apparently sheared off its right wing after hitting a light pole, then went down along a dirt road in a construction area in this town 90 miles north of Phoenix.

A witness saw the plane land and called Prescott Valley police, Sgt. P.J. Janik said.

The pilot flagged down a passing motorist to get a ride, he added.

It was not immediately clear what forced Swayze to make an emergency landing, but FAA officials were told the plane may have had a pressurization problem.

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