A family are counting their blessings after the husband took over the controls of a twin-engine plane after the pilot died in mid-flight – and landed it safely.
Fifty-year-old Doug White was flying home to Louisiana from Florida with his wife and two daughters when the drama happened.
They were passengers on a King Air plane that had just taken off from Southwest Florida International Airport.
A few minutes into the flight retired pilot Joe Cabuk reportedly made a choking sound and slipped into unconsciousness.
Mr White, who has been licensed for single-engine planes for 20 years but had never flown a plane so large, took the controls and radioed for help.
“I need help. I need a King Air pilot to talk to. We’re in trouble,” he told air traffic controllers.
He then ordered his family: “You all start praying hard.”
But 30 minutes later, the plane touched down safely and the family’s terrifying ordeal was over.
It came as a double relief for Mr White as he owns the King Air plane and leases it out through his company.
The cause of the pilot’s death has yet to be established.
Source: Yahoo