John Rufty, 74, critically injured, transported to hospital, after a single-engine aircraft, piloted by Edward Eugene Sisson, 84, crashes into a lawn mower, while landing at the Taylorsville Airport.

A small plane crash-landed right onto a man riding a lawn mower, chopping off his hand. Edward Eugene Sisson, the 84-year-old pilot of the single-engine plane, collided with a lawn mower operator while landing at North Carolina’s Taylorsville Airport Saturday afternoon. Sisson is an experienced pilot who was flying in from Crossville, Tenn., to visit family in Taylorsville, State Highway Patrol Sergeant Brian Owenby stated. The airman was traveling east toward a grass landing strip at the small privately-owned airport. His unlucky victim, 74-year-old John Rufty, was also traveling east on his lawn mower. The airport doesn't have a traffic controller, so there was no one to warn Rufty about the incoming plane. "(Rufty) wouldn't have been able to hear or see the plane coming," Owenby said. "And the pilot was unable to see the driver until just before impact." The propeller of the plane clipped into Rufty, completely severing the man's left hand. Both the plane and the mower flipped over during the accident. The pilot was able to walk away from the crash without any injuries. The victim was airlifted to the Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, Russell Greene, director of emergency services for Alexander County stated. Rufty was listed in critical condition on Saturday afternoon, a nursing supervisor stated. The sergeant said that despite the pilot's advanced age, he seemed to capable of handling the plane. "He was 84, but he didn't look like it or act it," Owenby said of Sisson. No charges are pending as of yet, Owenby reports. Managers of the privately owned airport were not available for comment on Saturday. The National Transportation and Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the incident.