An emergency situation is going on in Mississippi.
A pilot flying a plane over Tupelo, Mississippi is threatening to crash into a local Walmart.
Authorities received a report of a “King air type” plane flying rogue over Tupelo.
After further investigation, the Tupelo Police department was able to conclude that the plane is believed to be stolen.
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As of right now, the story is still breaking.
A pilot has threatened to intentionally crash this plane into a local Walmart in Tupelo, Mississippi, police say pic.twitter.com/lvWqKfwBDA
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) September 3, 2022
The pilot of a small airplane circling over Tupelo, Mississippi, on Saturday morning has threatened to crash the aircraft into a Walmart store, police said.
The Walmart and a nearby convenience store have been evacuated. https://t.co/T8aGUBhDy7
— The Associated Press (@AP) September 3, 2022
Fox News had more on the breaking report:
A pilot flying a small plane over Tupelo, Mississippi has threatened to crash into a Walmart, authorities warned Saturday.
The Tupelo Police Department said it was notified around 5 am this morning that a pilot flying what a “King Air type” airplane was considering crashing into a Walmart located on West Main street.
Authorities have confirmed the plane, which is believed to have been stolen, is a fixed wing multi-engine 1987 Beech C90A model.
Authorities said they have evacuated the Walmart and a Dodges eatery and gas station located near the shopping center to disperse people “as much as practical.”
Roads in west Tupelo and near the airport have been reopened and the pilot was last reported to be flying near a rural area in Hickory Flat, an area northeast of Tupelo, according to local coverage of the flight path.
Basically a bomb with wings: Pilot threatening to crash into Miss. Walmart flies away from Tupelo https://t.co/iY6YXNlI2G
— Frank Figliuzzi (@FrankFigliuzzi1) September 3, 2022
The Associated Press got the scoop too:
A stolen airplane circled over north Mississippi on Saturday morning, and police said they evacuated a Walmart store after the pilot threatened to crash into it.
The Tupelo Police Department said in a Facebook post that the Walmart and a nearby convenience store had been evacuated. The plane started circling over Tupelo, Mississippi, about 5 a.m. It was still in the air more than four hours later, but had flown away from Tupelo and was circling over another community nearby.
Police said they have made contact with the pilot directly.
“Citizens are asked to avoid that area until an all clear is given,” the police wrote. “With the mobility of an airplane of that type the danger zone is much larger than even Tupelo.”
Authorities believe the aircraft — a Beechcraft King Air C90A — was stolen and are working to determine whether the pilot threatening to crash the plane is an employee of a local airport, two people briefed on the matter told The Associated Press. Multiple federal agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, are now involved in the investigation and are working to discern a motive, the people said.
Pilot over Tupelo, MS is threatening to crash his plane into Walmart this morning. Evacs underway. You can’t track him anymore but here’s what his flying looked like. Scary situation to wake up to. pic.twitter.com/e3aHbfJPLz
— Zach Holder (@ZachHolderWx) September 3, 2022
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