Vacationing Air Force bomber pilot helped land Boeing 737 after pilot had a heart attack

Daily Mail UK ^ | June 2, 2014 | James Nye

[ConservativeStatement]

United Flight 1637 was returning off-duty Air Force Captain Mike Gongol, his family and 157 other souls from their Christmas vacation when disaster struck.

The Boeing 737's pilot suffered a devastating heart attack at 30,000 feet on the way from Des Moines to Denver, forcing Gongol to rush to the cockpit and help guide the plane to an emergency landing.

His heroic actions have gone unheralded until now, as Gongol recalls the dramatic moment he answered the chilling announcement on the December 30 flight, 'Does anyone know how to fly a plane?'

[JRandomFreeper]

I screwed up. See post 40.

I'll be back when I whip the infection and I'm not on stupid pills. ;)

/johnny

[Jeff Chandler]

the chilling announcement on the December 30 flight, 'Does anyone know how to fly a plane?'

My guess is it was more like, "Um . . . does anyone know how to fly a plane?"

[SkyDancer]

Usually FO’s are taken to fields to learn them. The PIC i.e captain talks them through it. Usually they don’t know what airport they’ll be flying to so there’s no time to learn the approach.

[centurion316]

Helping the First Officer land a perfectly good airplane in Omaha is exactly the same as keeping a flak damaged B-17 on the bomb run over Mainz. If you want the standards to be enforced, this might be a good place to start.

[VeniVidiVici]

Hopefully United has given this guy free lifetime passes.

[NYFreeper]

A couple of technical errors in the article. The B-1 is not a nuclear bomber (not anymore) and they don’t fly out of Ft Carson.

[njslim]

I do - Have M4, M6, M7

[Cowgirl of Justice]

And then there is the oft told airline story about the captain giving his level off announcement over the PA: weather, arrival time, yadda, yadda, yadda.
Still keying the mike, he dropped his hand and rested it on his leg and announced to the First Officer, “Boy, I sure could use a cup of coffee and a blow job”, not knowing that the entire plane had heard the exchange.

One of the flight attendants turned to run up to the cockpit to let them know about the PA. A little old lady sitting in the last row cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled,”you forgot the coffee!!!”

[SampleMan]

Can’t imagine a long straight in with single channel priority would be too taxing, but I guess if she needed a someone to warm the seat then that was good.

[Jane Long]

What a blessing that this pilot was on this flight.

[Jet Jaguar]

Active Duty ping.

[Mad Dawgg]

If I were a USA Airline I would allow all US military pilots to fly free on my Airlines with the understanding they are required to check in with the flight crew so they can be ready for such an emergency I would also require them to be armed.

I know if an Airline did such it would forever be my airline of choice...

[zot]

Thanks for the ping to this good story with a happy ending,

[Mark17]

I stayed at a Holiday Inn last night.

Are you there guy who was visiting the college campus to see your daughter, and ended up solving Coleman's enigma?

[353FMG]

How about free flights on United for him and family for as long as he lives?

[Mark17]

LOL, good one. Reminds me of another, not like yours, but the Pres told the pilot of Air Force one to let him know when they were over the Philippines. Later the pilot tells the Pres, we are over the Philippines. He asked the pilot how he knew that. The pilot said, well, I put my arm out the cockpit window, and when I brought it back in, my watch was gone.

[Political Junkie Too]

That mustt have been a different Holiday Inn.

And the funny thing is, I really did stay at a Holiday Inn on Saturday night!

-PJ

[pops88]

I dread hearing that or “is there a dr. or nurse on board.” I can deliver a baby, keep a premie alive and at 55 might remember how to land an Archer or 172. I’ve logged time in a 727 on a ferry flight, time in a sewer tube and a few multi-engines but I have no illusions of turning into Kurt Russell in Executive Decision. Flying in the back is so stressful now I like a steady, slow flow of beer. I can function better that way than on Xanax. Hubby and I were laughing over this just this afternoon.

My husband’s FO commented that he threw back a lot of beer before flying as a pax. He said, “Yeah, I know what ___’s maintenance is like.” And Lord knows my husband won’t let his FO fly when the VIP is on board. LOL. Thankfully hubby only has a few more years till retirement.

So...I’m guessing the guy helped with radio calls and the checklists.

[pops88]

Oh, and with his years of experience probably told her how to fly the approach and when to flare. I’m sure he really is a hero and didn’t mean my other post to be dismissive, just that she would have been more familiar in the cockpit while he had more years of experience.

[tcrlaf]

“If this is a problem, then that F.O. doesn’t need to be in that job any more. It’s an airport. It has a runway or three.”

One of the factors in the UPS Airbus crash at Birmingham last year was the pilots unfamiliarity with the runway being landed on, due to the primary being closed. United Company Procedure probably plays a big part of this story.

Captain incapacitated with a low-time FO, going in to an unfamiliar airport in inclement weather. She needs to get it on the ground as quickly as possible, due to the Med problem.. You’ll note she called for any off-duty pass riders.