On July 10, shortly after taking off from a Long Island airport in his bright-yellow Challenger, Frank Fierro had to make an emergency landing on a grassy median on the Sunrise Highway. Fierro blamed engine trouble for the incident, and the Suffolk County Police credited the 75-year-old pilot’s “wealth of [flying] experience” with allowing him to get the single-engine plane onto the ground undamaged and without harming anyone. But on Friday afternoon, the authorities were called to the same part of the Sunrise Highway, where engine trouble had again forced Fierro to land — this time in one of the eastbound lanes, though he managed to move the aircraft to the shoulder of the road. (Once again, no one was hurt.) According to the police, this is the first time Fierro has flown his plane since last week’s landing. For everyone’s sake, it would probably be best if he doesn’t try to figure out if the third time really is a charm.
