In the United States, a passenger managed to land on a single-engine airplane with the help of radio instructions from a flight controller after the plane’s pilot crashed during the trip. The incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon (10/5) in Palm Beach, Florida (USA).
In the cockpit recordings, the man’s voice is heard telling the airport tower that he “didn’t know how to stop the plane”.
“I have a serious situation here. My pilot is unfit,” the man says over the radio as the plane flies at an altitude of 2,750 meters. “He is in the outside.”
When asked about his position, he replied, “I have no idea.” He said he could see the Florida beach in front of him.
“Keep your wings straight and try to follow the coast north or south,” the air traffic controller said. “We’re trying to find you.”
“I can’t even open my navigation screen,” said the man. “It has all the information in it. Any ideas on this? I don’t know how to stop the plane. I don’t know how.”
Air traffic controller Robert Morgan, who worked as an aviation professor, helped the man land at Palm Beach International Airport.
Even with experience, has Morgan never used this model? a single-engine Cessna 208?, but managed to use a map of the aircraft’s cabin to instruct the pilot.
“I knew the plane flew like any other plane. I knew I had to hold it. [o passageiro] keep calm, show him the way to the track and teach him how to reduce the power so he can land.”
In the audio recording, Morgan teaches the man to “move the controls and descend at a very slow pace” as he approaches for landing.
“Before I realized it, I was like, ‘I’m on the ground. How do I turn this thing off?’ was like,” he says.
Passenger and Morgan met on the track, hugged and posed for pictures. Amid the enthusiasm, however, Morgan did not hear the man’s name, a WPBF reporter told BBC News.
The name was also not recorded in the radio sound.
“I felt like I was going to cry because there was so much adrenaline,” Morgan told CNN. “It was an emotional moment. He said he just wanted to go home to find his pregnant wife… And that made me feel even better.”
“He was a hero to me,” she continued. “I was just doing my job.”
After the plane landed, Morgan spoke to the other pilots on the runway, praising the passenger.
“You just witnessed a passenger landing on that plane,” he told another pilot who was waiting for takeoff.
“You said the passengers landed the plane?” The pilot replied. “Oh my God. You did a great job.”
The Federal Aviation Administration said the plane was registered at a private address in the State of Connecticut.
According to FlightAware flight tracker, it had taken off from Marsh Harbor in the Bahamas about an hour ago.
The pilot was taken to the hospital. The name and condition of the pilot were not disclosed.
source: Noticias
