Yvonne Kinane-Wells was forced to do the unthinkable when the lives of her and her husband were thrust into her hands after he suffered a heart attack. At 5,900 feet attitude no less.
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The real estate agent was enjoying a ride in a propeller plane when her husband, the pilot, suddenly suffered a heart attack. She had no prior piloting experience whatsoever and yet managed to get traffic control to guide her through the process of landing the vehicle.
With her husband incapacitated next to her, she had to focus on piloting the plane. A task many wouldn't be able to handle. Saving both her and her husband's life, she managed to land the plane at an 11,000-foot runway in a Californian airport.
Hero Lands Plane With No Experience
The couple was traveling to Monterey, California, from Henderson Executive Airport, Las Vegas. Upon her husband suffering a heart attack, Kiane-Wells contacted traffic control to guide her through the emergency landing. "We're going to set you up so that as you level off from your turn, you're going to be straight in for Bakersfield Airport. Is that alright?" the agent said to Kinane-Wells.
The operator guided Kiane-Welles to Bakersfield Airport, California. Despite the shakiness in her voice, Kiane-Wells manages to expertly pilot the aircraft to the location. Emergency crews were already at the landing strip to meet the passenger-turned-pilot and assist her husband.
Incredibly, the plane suffered not one mark or scratch despite the inexperience of the pilot and the emergency landing. Upon landing, Kiane-Wells used all 11,000 ft of the runway and went a little off-road at the end. Thankfully, this didn't turn out to be a problem.
Thanks to the expert guidance of the traffic control operator and the deft skills and focus of the stricken wife, Kiane-Wells managed to get the plane to safety and her husband into the hands of emergency services.
Currently, the condition of Yvonne Kiane-Wells' husband is unknown. Ron Brewster, a Director of Airports, commented on the miraculous event, saying that "it's unprecedented" and that "[he's] never seen it in [his] entire career."
Although the heroics of Yvonne Kiane-Wells is something to be celebrated, I hope her husband gets the attention he needs and makes a full recovery.
