A pilot and two children were rescued after surviving for nearly 12 hours on the wing of a crashed plane, partially submerged in a frozen lake.
The crash happened during a sightseeing flight over the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska. The group was saved on Tuesday morning after being spotted by a pilot helping in the search.
The small plane, a Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser, took off from Soldotna on Saturday and went missing during the flight to Skilak Lake. It had no emergency locator beacon, which made the search harder. On Monday, a Facebook post asking for help caught the attention of Terry Godes, a pilot who decided to join the search the next day.
Godes flew over the icy landscape and found the plane near Tustumena Lake, about 130 kilometres southwest of Anchorage. When he got closer, he was relieved to see all three survivors alive and waving from the wing. He quickly radioed the location to other pilots and authorities.
The Alaska Army National Guard sent a helicopter to the site. Because of strong winds, rescuers had to hover close to the wing to bring the survivors aboard safely. The children were dry, but the pilot had become very cold from the icy water.
The three were taken to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening. They had only basic clothing and spent a cold night in freezing temperatures. Rescuers said they were lucky the plane didn’t sink completely and that the tail had frozen in place, keeping the wing above water.
