Uncategorized

Pilot and 2 girls miraculously survive plane crash by clinging to wing in freezing Alaska lake for 12 hours

Two young girls and a pilot miraculously survived a plane crash Sunday by huddling atop the aircraft’s wing for 12 long hours on a freezing Alaskan lake, according to witnesses and rescuers.

The 38-year-old man and two young relatives in his immediate family were spotted atop the partially submerged Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser in the Tustumena Lake by a volunteer pilot who stepped forward Monday to help search for the trio.

Terry Godes said he initially thought he had only discovered the wreckage of the crash.

An airplane sits partially submerged into the ice of Tustumena Lake near Soldotna, Alaska on March 24, 2025.AP

“It kind of broke my heart to see that, but as I got closer down and lower, I could see that there’s three people on top of the wing,” he told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

As Godes kept approaching and saying a prayer, he saw signs of life. The trio even waved at him.

“They were alive and responsive and moving around,” Godes said.

Godes notified other volunteer pilots about the incredible discovery, leading fellow aviator Dale Eicher to contact Alaska State Troopers.

“I wasn’t sure if we would find them, especially because there was a cloud layer over quite a bit of the mountains, so they could have very easily been in those clouds that we couldn’t get to,” Eicher said.

The family members, who were on a sightseeing tour along the Kenai Peninsula, were rescued from the wreck by an Alaska Army National Guard helicopter, which lifted them to safety.

Pilot Terry Godes and his to younger relatives held onto the wings of the Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser before being rescued.John B. Morris/Facebook

While the two girls were relatively dry, the pilot was hypothermic to an extent, said Lt. Col. Brendon Holbrook, who commands the 207th Aviation Regiment.

None of the three sustained any life-threatening injuries, authorities said.

“It was literally the best possible scenario and outcome,” Holbrook said.

The family members, who were on a sightseeing tour along the Kenai Peninsula, were rescued from the wreck by an Alaska Army National Guard helicopter, which lifted them to safety.AP

“Ultimately, the crew of that airplane were lucky, because from what my guys told me, that plane was in the ice with the tail refrozen, and if that tail hadn’t refrozen, it would have sunk.”

The miracle comes after a small commuter plane crashed into sea ice in the Norton Sound, which is on Alaska’s western coast.

All 10 people onboard were 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ed.

But Monday turned out to be a better outcome.

“They spent a long, cold, dark, wet night out on top of a wing of an airplane that they weren’t planning on,” Godes said.

Related Posts

Barge captain in deadly crash given sobriety test; victim ID’d as famed TV producer’s granddaughter

The captain of a barge that plowed into a sailboat in Florida has been given a sobriety test, as it emerged that one of the two girls who…

Oprah Winfrey denies claim she kept private Hawaii road closed during tsunami evacuation

Oprah Winfrey’s spokesperson set the record straight amid speculation that the former talk show host closed her private Hawaii road during a tsunami evacuation. “As soon as we heard…

Heartbreaking vid shows giant whales washed up on Japanese beach after Russian mega quake sparks tsunami warnings

HEARTBREAKING footage shows giant whales washed up on a beach in Japan after a monster Russian earthquake sparked tsunami warnings. The magnitude 8.8 quake hit off Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka peninsula…

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗔𝗕𝗟𝗘𝗦 𝟱 (𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱)

El mundo necesita héroes, otra vez. Los Mercenarios 5 (2025) reúne a los mercenarios más elitistas del mundo para su misión más peligrosa hasta la fecha. Con la…

𝗝𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿

La leyenda regresa, más grande, más audaz y más peligrosa que nunca. En este tráiler conceptual creado por un fan, Tom Holland interpreta al intrépido joven granjero que…

𝗦𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝟮

Dwayne Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexandra Daddario y Scott Eastwood se reúnen en esta emocionante secuela, dirigida una vez más por Brad Peyton. Cuando un terremoto colosal azota la…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *