You picked up this book because you have watched the Miracle on the Hudson and wondered what goes on inside a cockpit when everything goes wrong, and because you know the landing you saw was not luck. You have heard about the 747 that lost all 4 engines over a volcano, the airliner that glided across the Atlantic, and the crew that landed a crippled jet with almost no controls, and you want the real story of how it happened. Or maybe you just love a true story where ordinary people rise to the impossible. Whatever brought you here, you share a belief this book honors: the pilots who saved impossible flights were not superhuman, they were prepared.
This book is not a technical manual, and it is not a list of accident reports, and it is not a celebration of drama for its own sake. It is not a book that needs you to know anything about aviation, and it does not hide behind jargon. What you actually need is the true story of 10 flights that should not have ended well, told through the people who made them end well, with the tension intact and the details accurate. The pages that follow are exactly that.
Inside, you'll discover:
• The 155 people saved by a ditching in the Hudson River, and the 42 years of training behind it
• The 747 that glided 91 miles on no engines after flying through volcanic ash
• The jet that ran out of fuel over Canada and landed on a race track
• The DC-10 that lost all hydraulics and still brought 184 people home
• The A380 that came back with 100 system warnings and not a single injury
• The captain who was sucked out of the cockpit and survived
• The cornfield landing that proved the lessons of the past are still alive
Every miracle in this book was built on preparation, calm, teamwork, and the courage to act under pressure. Read these stories and you will understand why flying is as safe as it is, and why the person in the left seat is the most important safety system on board.