A young Florida pilot who crash-landed her plane in the Atlantic Ocean after experiencing a mechanical failure has said she’s incredibly fortunate to have been able to swim away from the incident.
Faith Tenkley, 23, was heading to the Bahamas on Saturday to collect her parents but was forced to make an emergency landing off the coast of Boca Raton, Florida, after her right engine failed and her landing gear broke.
She decided to ditch her Piper PA30 propeller plane in the water amid fears landing at Boca Raton airport could spark a fire given the fuel load she was carrying.
“I am incredibly fortunate and relieved to share that I was able to swim away from this incident,” Tenkley, a pilot of four years, told WPTV on Saturday.
“After deciding a landing at Boca Raton Airport was not the safest option I continued to the coast. During the descent my primary focus was ensuring the safety of everyone around me.
“I was able to navigate toward open water, successfully avoiding all nearby buildings, paddleboarders, and swimmers (as well as individuals using metal detectors). I am incredibly fortunate and relieved to share that I was able to swim away from this incident.”
Tenkley left Page Field airport in Fort Myers just before 8:50 a.m. but ran into difficulties around 15 miles off Boca Raton.
She expertly brought the plane down on the water less than an hour after take-off, with video capturing the rather controlled landing as she avoided crashing into people and buildings.
Witnesses on the beach were left stunned as they watched the pilot in action.
“One second I’m spraying sunscreen on my kid. The next I’m looking up and saying, ‘Is that supposed to be happening?’” Maria Marks, a beachgoer, told WPBF.
Alex Bester, another witness, told WPLG he initially didn’t know if the plane was going to land on the sand or in the water after it “came in low.”
“They went for the shallow water which I think is kinda smart,” he said.
Tenkley was able to make her way back to the shore and crews have since removed the plane from the water.
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