Five miracles airline pilots pulled off that saved lives of hundreds of passengers and crew
From Captain Chesley Sullenberger’s death-defying landing on New York’s Hudson River to the quick thinking of a China Eastern pilot to avoid a deadly runway collision, here are some of commercial aviation’s narrowest escapes
Two Chinese pilots who safely landed a passenger jet after a cockpit windscreen blew out in mid-air on Monday have been praised as heroes by the public for saving hundreds of lives.
In what has been described as a “miracle landing”, Sichuan Airlines pilot Liu Chuanjian operated in temperatures as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius to steer the plane manually to southwestern China’s Chengdu city for an emergency landing.
Praise for Chinese pilots as inquiries start into how plane lost windscreen
None of the 119 passengers were injured, but the co-pilot Xu Ruichen was almost sucked out of the cockpit and suffered a cut to his face after the windscreen shattered at an altitude of 9,750 metres (32,000 feet).
Although flying remains the safest way to travel and aviation deaths have steadily declined over the past two decades, the skill and courage of pilots still remain critical when a mishap occurs. Here are five passenger flights whose pilots have been remembered for the miracles they pulled off, which helped hundreds narrowly escape death.
1. Southwest Airlines Flight 1380
April 17, 2018
An American ex-fighter pilot saved the lives of 148 people on-board her plane by making a successful emergency landing after one of the passenger jet’s engines exploded.