'We didn't die': Pilot recounts crash landing in Atlantic with 10 aboard
The 11 survivors spent roughly five hours on a life raft, before being rescued by the US Air Force off Florida coast.
Coverage by Political Leaning
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Notable Quotes
"Once I hit the water, my first thought was: 'We didn't die.'"
— Ian Nixon , Other
"Everybody was rejoicing to know that we get saved because we thought we were going to die."
— Olympia Outten , Other
"You could tell just by looking at them that they were in distress - physically, mentally and emotionally."
— Rory Whipple , Other
"And, from what I've seen, I mean, for all those people to survive is pretty miraculous."
— Elizabeth Piowaty , Other
"And from what I’ve seen, for all those people to survive is pretty miraculous, and then get in the raft all together."
— Elizabeth Piowaty , Other
"That moment was 'bingo time', a colloquial military term for the 'hard time that we need to leave the scene and go back because we’re low on gas'."
— Matt Johnson , Activist
"They were in distress, physically, mentally, emotionally after so long in the ocean, unaware of whether there was any possibility of a rescue."
— Rory Whipple , Other
"I was trapped, I had my seatbelt on, my son was saying 'Mummy, go' we had to get out."
— Olympia Outten , Other
"Once I hit the water, my first thought was, 'We didn't die.'"
— Ian Nixon , Other
"Everybody was rejoicing to know that we get saved because we thought we were going to die."
— Olympia Outten , Other
"I have not known anyone to survive a ditching in the ocean."
— Maj Elizabeth Piowaty , Other
"Basically, lost my navigation, all radios, flying over 25 years, and I’ve never seen anything like that."
— Ian Nixon , Other
"Once I hit the water, my first thought was, ‘We didn’t die.’"
— Ian Nixon , Other
"While on the raft, I said, ‘In the next 10 minutes a plane is going to come.’"
— Ian Nixon , Other
"Once I hit the water, my first thought was, ‘We didn’t die.’"
— Ian Nixon , Other
Key People
Captain with the US Air Force's 920th Rescue Wing.
Major and aircraft commander who assisted with the rescue.
Pilot with 25 years of flying experience.
Aircraft commander who assisted with the rescue.
Conservation manager at the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire & Northamptonshire.
Passenger on the plane involved in the crash.
Captain of the US Air Force involved in the rescue.
Tags
All Coverage
The 11 survivors spent roughly five hours on a life raft, before being rescued by the US Air Force off Florida coast.
Pilot Ian Nixon describes losing both engines and all communication systems before crash-landing a Beechcraft King Air 300 off Florida's east coast, leading to a rescue by the U.S. Air Force.
Pilot Ian Nixon shares his experience of losing both engines and all communication systems before crash-landing a Beechcraft King Air 300 off Florida's east coast, leading to a rescue by the U.S. Air Force.
Pilot Ian Nixon describes the catastrophic mechanical failures that led to the crash-landing of a Beechcraft King Air 300 off Florida's east coast, resulting in a rescue by the U.S. Air Force.
Bahamian pilot Ian Nixon recounts the terrifying ordeal of losing both engines and all communication systems before crash-landing a Beechcraft King Air 300 off Florida's east coast, leading to a rescue by the U.S. Air Force.
U.S. Air Force crew recounts the 'miraculous' survival of all 11 people rescued from a plane crash in the Atlantic Ocean, highlighting the challenges faced during the operation.
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