The identity of the Florida man who took control of a small plane to land it after his pilot lost consciousness has been revealed.
Darren Harrison (39), is the vice-president of an interior decoration company. He is also expecting a baby with his wife.
Harrison was returning from a fishing trip in Bahamas as a passenger in a Cessna with 9 seats. When the pilot suddenly lost control of the controls and the plane began to nose dive, Harrison was left behind.
Harrison knew that he needed to move quickly. Harrison rushed to the cockpit and grabbed the controls, despite his friend being on the plane. He tried to connect with the control tower, but he had difficulty plugging in the headphones.
“I’ve got a serious situation here. My pilot has gone incoherent. I have no idea how to fly the airplane,”Harrison said it over the radio.
Harrison was taught a vital lesson about air traffic control by Air Traffic Control.
“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 spoke.
“We all started going to work, starting to try to locate this plane,”Chip Pierce from Fort Pierce Air Traffic Control shares Inside Edition.
Harrison answered the question “What is his position?” “I have no idea. I can see the coast of Florida in front of me and I have no idea.”
“Just try to follow the coast either north or southbound. We’re trying to locate you,”The air traffic controller spoke.
It is also being revealed that the plane disappeared from radar just as Harrison was about to land at Palm Beach International Airport.
“The whole way in, he was lined up perfectly with the runway, so I knew since he was doing so good already that he would definitely get close in to the runway,” Palm Beach air traffic controller Robert Morgan said.
Harrison remained cool and, amazingly, landed safely.
Morgan showed Morgan the photo he had taken to help him familiarize himself with the Cessna’s controls after landing.
The nation is now singing the praises for the father-to be who achieved the miracle landing.
