Posted on 05/11/2022 1:22:43 PM PDT by PROCON
Just after noon on Tuesday, a passenger flying in a single-engine plane about 20 miles east of Boca Raton, Fla., radioed air-traffic control.
“I’ve got a serious situation here. My pilot has gone incoherent,” the man said, adding from about 9,000 feet up that he had “no idea how to fly the airplane.”
The passenger, who did not identify himself in the exchange archived on LiveATC.net, told the control tower that he was not sure where he was — only that he could “see the coast of Florida in front of me.”
From a tower in Fort Pierce, about 75 miles north of Boca Raton, the air traffic controller asked the passenger to reiterate his situation. The passenger repeated that the pilot was incoherent: “He is out.”
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(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
Yes, it was. Also points out that the Cessna must be one heck of a stable airplane.
I actually think I could do it, though I just as soon not have to try. Having worked aircraft instrumentation in the Air Force at least I know what the gauges are and what they mean.
I know nothing about planes.
But - just last week I was working off the end of a small runway. A couple of corporate jets took off and landed - sort of fast.
A restored WWII single prop plane did some touch and goes and landed (really fast - seemed faster than the jets, but that might have just been it’s “wow” factor and the sound).
A Cessna or some such would land. They appeared to be traveling no faster than someone could run. I thought to myself “Heck - I bet I could even land that. And if I crashed, I’m only going 5 mph and would walk away.” (Obviously they are going much faster than that, but the comparison between the planes was huge.)
Already discussed the “Barefoot Bandit” that learned to fly by reading the manuals.
And then there was the baggage guy in Seattle that stole a 727(?) that he learned to fly by taxiing it at the airport and on Microsoft Flight Simulator. He ended up flying quite a ways and even did a roll or two before he nosed it down towards an island to kill himself.
In fair weather, low temperature, it’s easy.
This looks like a nice still day.
The hardest thing for me to learn was to have the balls to cut the throttle enough that you effectively stall right above the runway. Everything in my body fought that.
That was 5000+ hours ago.
And he’s a Republican!
Impressive!! That was one smooth landing.
Was that the “kid” who was barefoot when he flew and when he was captured? For some reason being barefoot was a thing.
But I think the greater hurdle is keeping calm under that kind of duress. (Rudyard Kipling's "If" comes to mind.) I would think that having everyone moved away from you and you being given priority handling by ATC would greatly simplify matters.
Just aim for the ground. You can’t miss it. It’s right below you.
Sounds fishy to me too. I have hours in a Cessna 150. He was a little too good with instrument readings, flight controls, etc and he greased the landing.
Sky, can you respond to post #37?
I suppose.
A 70mph cross wind and having to crab and effectively land sideways on a small strip in middle of the Rocky Mountains where you get one approach is what I trained for.
Yes - they called him the barefoot bandit. (He wore shoes most of the time, but...)
Well, the stall speed of Cessna 172 is about 47 knots at sea level and 72F.
So roughly 49mph.
Lots of things are involved; most people would freak out, secondly would be over controlling (always use small inputs) the plane and can easily stall it out. You have to be coordinated in controlling the aircraft. The air traffic controller did an excellent job talking the person down.
Great story. A similar situation happened to a man named Doug White who had to land a King Air 200 with his wife and daughters on board after the pilot died of a heart attack. LightWorks pictures is making a movie about it to be released next year.
If you donâÂÂt want to wait that long thereâÂÂs a great YouTube video that chronicles the ordeal using the actual ATC recordings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqPvVxxIDr0
Thanks, I did already watch that video, incredible story.
If that’s the plane that person flew - amazing!! It’s the type of plane I use as the jump plane on weekends and believe me, you really have to know what you’re doing flying that thing.
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