A man with no flying experience was forced to land a plane on Tuesday when the pilot became incapacitated. "I've got a serious situation here," he told an air traffic controller at a Florida airport (audio below). "My pilot has gone incoherent, and I have no idea how to fly the airplane."
Just he and the pilot were aboard the single-engine Cessna 208 when he asked for help. "What's your position?" the controller asked. "I have no idea," the passenger said.
"Try to hold the wings level and see if you can start descending for me. Push forward on the controls and descend at a very slow rate," the air traffic controller said.
"Try to follow the coast either north or southbound," the controller continued (this part not heard on audio, but reported by CNN). "We're trying to locate you."
The passenger remained calm as he safely landed the plane at Palm Beach International Airport (according to CNN).
The audio below includes comments after the landing by the tower operator and an American Airlines pilot headed for Charlotte, NC. "You just witnessed a couple of passengers land that plane," the tower operator said.
"Did you say the passenger landed the airplane?" the pilot said. "Oh, my God. Great job."
As of CNN's reporting, the condition of the pilot isn't immediately clear.
