Imagine piloting a single passenger plane when suddenly your aircraft's canopy bursts open, exposing you to deafening noise, vision-impairing wind, and potential disaster. This nightmare scenario became reality for pilot Narine Melkumjan, who recently posted the harrowing cockpit footage to YouTube.
The incident occurred during a training flight in an Extra 330LX aircraft. During Melkumjan's second flight of the day, the aircraft's canopy unexpectedly opened and shattered mid-flight. Melkumjan vividly describes the distressing experience, detailing the intense noise, breathing difficulties, and severely impaired visibility she endured. She reports that it took nearly 28 hours for her vision to fully recover. Additionally, she experienced aerodynamic issues, including buffeting and controllability challenges.
Melkumjan admits the mishap could have been prevented with a proper visual inspection to ensure the canopy locking pin had engaged correctly. She also acknowledges several factors that contributed to canopy burst. First, she had recently recovered from COVID-19 and hadn't allowed sufficient time for full recovery. Second, she was flying without eye protection, which exacerbated the challenges posed by the open canopy.
"If you are a pilot watching this," she says, "I hope that my story serves as a cautionary tale and that you will learn from my mistake."
Previously:
• Pilot flying passenger plane from Miami to Chile dies on flight
