Woman crash-lands plane at Sevilla airport after pilot’s collapse

A WOMAN with no flight experience was left with no choice but to take the controls of a light aircraft when the pilot lost consciousness, suffering burns and several other injuries in a crash landing in Sevilla. The pilot did not survive, although reports are as yet unclear as to whether he died before the plane came down near Sevilla airport on Sunday (August 23).

Spanish media has reported that the woman and the pilot were married.

“The woman kept flying, she did not know how to fly, so they guided her from the control tower to see if she could control the plane until landing it at the airport,” said a spokesperson from the emergency services.

In a dialogue between the woman and air traffic control published in Diario de Sevilla, the controller talks the woman through the process of landing the plane, all the while telling her not to worry.

The plane came down around three kilometres short of the runway at Sevilla airport, which was closed for almost two hours.