Real Pilot Story: Ditching in the Dark 

In 1983 I ditched a Cessna T210 into the ocean halfway between CA & Hawaii. Recommend about 15 degrees of flaps to reduce impact pressure upon water contact. Land parallel to swells. Be sure to open all doors & windows prior to ditching allowing water to flood airplane cabin ( particularly in a high wing ) as this equalizes the pressure allowing you to escape. Life raft must be free & accessible - part of your pre-ditching checklist. Low wing planes can sometimes float for hours - particularly if fuel starvation prompted the ditching. Air in fuel tanks provides a degree of boyancy. However, a quick exit from the aircraft is always best. Upon raft inflation all unnecessary items go over board. Then it's time to PRAY !! ( I floated for 6 days before being spotted by a C.G. C-130 maritime patrol plane ).

When I flew day IFR many years ago from Naples area on V225 south to Key West in a Bonanza(about 80nm over Florida Bay)ATC consistently gave instructions to descend to very low altitudes(3-4000’) when I was still way beyond gliding distance of land, forcing me to negotiate to remain at higher(usually 8-10,000’) altitude just for safety’s sake.I was never turned down. Pilots need to take control and emphasize why, if challenged, they must remain at a higher altitude.I cannot imagine doing this flight at 4000’ at night, especially with such limited survival equipment.The everglades, next door, is probably no better for overnite survival.Sounds like a good job of ditching that Mooney.

I used to fly from Fort Lauderdale executive to key west all the time. I would take the route over the keys, even though it was longer and I had to deal with Boca Chica naval base and Miami international. If for some reason I would go over the long stretch of water, I would climb as high as possible and be on alert as soon as I left homestead. I’m glad you guys made it. So often these videos end in tragedy. Cheers.

In addition to the survival gear, the three other most important assets to have available are altitude, altitude, and altitude, especially over difficult terrain, open water, and/or at night. Especially with newer Mooneys and similar aircraft, the glide ratio is one of the more important safety features of the aircraft. It will typically offer some time and options to work out whatever can be worked out in a situation like this.

What an expensive way to give yourself nightmares for the rest of your life...

I couldn't agree more about having survival gear! On a tubing trip last year, I flipped out of my tube & found myself in a mess because it had rained a lot over the past few days! If I hadn't had that PFD on I doubt I'd be posting this comment now. The whistle got the attention & rescue I couldn't get otherwise because the rapids were so loud & when struggling in water, you'd be surprised how much energy your body can spend in a short amount of time. I know my account has zip to do with airplanes but it does get the point across on how important that survival gear can be, even during those trips we consider to be low risk, like tubing :) Be safe~enjoy life :)

From my previous comment, that person at right is responsible for that door getting open so keeping him alive, conscious & able to get people out is very important. You might consider cracking the door open just before impact to keep it from getting jammed shut.

Love the arm chair comments....but they lived, so good piloting and sharing reminds us to better prepare ourselves.

I've flown over Lake Erie during my instrument training and even then I took the PA28 up to 9000 ft just in case I were to have engine failure I'd make be able to glide to land. Why were they at 4000 ft makes zero sense to me. Glad they came out ok.

Consider carrying a personal locator beacon. I carry a Garmin InReach GPS/Satcom beacon with SOS function. Sends my position every 10 min, in flight (adjustable), but when SOS button is pushed sets off the alarms. Waterproof (or at least designed to look like it is...). I carry it whenever I fly my glider as the chance of a land out is much greater than with a power plane, and the position is easily monitored by the folks at the home field. I keep it attached to my parachute.

What was the cause of the engine failure? 1000hrs and lived in the Keys, but no raft and hi-spec vests as stock? ELBs? He did the best he could and all survived. So for that, we can be thankful. A water impact at night could easily have killed them. He obviously exercised some skill in the ditching.

I just found it funny that you ended up being 27 miles from Marathon.

I really love the use of Flight sim X on these videos. Great channel.

Great video. It's nice to hear stories about people SURVIVING a ditching!

I have flown my SE airplane from Miami to Cozumel. We went during the day, flew at 12,000' and wore life vests with a PLB attached and had a raft. We also carry a hand-held radio. I can't imagine doing this at night at 4,000' without wearing the vests. On our aircraft, we can open the door and relatch the lock so that it can't close, thus no need to hold it open for a water landing.

The Gulf. . .Great Whites actually roam along the coast and by roam I mean 50 miles off the coast. Ditching in any ocean is my worst nightmare

thank you for sharing- a learning experience for you and viewers.

You saw Key West from the water just south of Naples where you ditched? You must have 20/10'000 vision. Bravo Sierra 100%.

Wow amazing story. I'm glad the pilot kept calm and was able to ditch well enough that everyone survived and unharmed it sounded like. Seems you had a bit of luck that night, except for the whole engine failure thing.

Lesson: DON'T FLY OVER THE OCEAN WITHOUT A LIFE RAFT ON BOARD, AND STROBES ON LIFEJACKETS.

Raft + vests with lights and EPIRB/beacon and a stupidly bright flashlight are all really good ideas. What's amazing is how little room this equipment takes up if chosen well.

jesus - if they'd have been in the north atlantic it would have been game over

I'm in Key West and remember hearing about this. No long flights over open water in anything less than a twin for me, thanks.

Crossing the everglades and dark ocean with virtually no safety gear other than life vests. This is the age of GPS personal rescue beacons, and lights attached to the vests should have been checked. There is a lot to say about pilot responsibilities here.

I couldn't agree more, it is especially important to be equipped with parachutes (life jackets of the land), as well as life jackets and flashlights. You never know what can go wrong

Very good - thank you ! 🙂😎👍

love the German subtitles for all my Austrian and Swiss friends in the room!!!!

Crazy to think it's probably better to ditch in the ocean than in the everglades, if you're hoping for a fast rescue.

What a great ending to an otherwise awful story. I've got a ppl and have flown from Ireland to the UK in a 172 on a few trips, life vests are a must, we carry a liferaft but in reality, if the worst was to happen, PIC taking the keys out and opening the cargo door in time for the raft doesn't seem like a reality unfortunately

Torch with a strobe and a PLB should be part of every flight kit for night flight or flight over water or back country.

I just don't understand why you would want to fly a single at night.

This is a great story by the ASI b/c it illustrates everything you SHOULD NOT DO when planning a flight over water, esp. at night. This pilot demonstrated he was totally incompetent on that occasion. I can't imagine flying over this amount of water and not carrying a raft, PLB, and flare gun...among other things. He could have easily routed along the coast. Who would get into an airplane with this guy?

Even a flashing light used in a bike would help them...

It's easy to be judgmental in these crashes because some of the decision making is questionable. I think if I was flying a single engine light aircraft whether night or day and I had the option of staying over land , that's what I would do. Sure it costs some more fuel but it's worth it IMO. Wonder if they had any theories why the engine quit.

I was just ready to comment about how stupid he was not to check the new life jackets that he brought (for lights whistles etc), but then I remembered my own brush with the water , I was onboard a sinking ship and stayed asleep whilst people were airlifted off , I only woke up when water washed over my bed (top bunk) , I scrambled out of bed using my life jacket that was hanging up next to my bunk to steady myself , then I scrambled out of my room leaving my life jacket behind , doh 😖. Luckily for me the helicopter was still onsite checking to see if I was in the water (even though no one bothered to wake me up and tell me that we were sinking), the rest of the crew did make rescuers aware that I had been aboard , to be fair to the crew the ships alarm klaxon had been sounding and no one expected that one could sleep through such a racket . Luckily I was airlifted off the ship and as such had no need for my life jacket but it just goes to show that hindsight is a wonderful thing and in this case I have no right to question how the pilot could purchase life jackets without checking them after stupid me used my own life jacket to steady myself then promptly left without , seriously though when things go wrong they tend to go wrong very quickly and quick thinking is needed , something that I was never known to be good at lol 😂. Kudos to the pilot for a water landing in the dark , that took some balls of steel to pull off .

Not trying to judge what anyone did, but I wonder if they had a mirror with them. From what I have heard that is one of the best rescue device for finding someone in the ocean during the day, which is when they were rescued. When it is bright from the air seeing a head in the water is very difficult. A reflector helps a lot.

This is the very reason why I would not fly at night, over water or in IMC with a SE plane, crazy especially when you don't have to!

I wanted to comment that it's probably not a good idea to fly over water at night in a single engine, but then again some people cross oceans routinely in similar aircraft, so I guess everyone has their own risk profile.

Im not involved in any aviation at all..but just reinforcing things like this show does can reflect on many different aspects and in turn just make things safer and safe lives.

It's up to the pilot to check if any safety equipment is current and in working order before takeoff.

HOW HORRIFYING!!!!!

Well done ! This Pilot did an excellent job ditching into the water in the dark. The Pilot did the two most important things correctly. Ditching into the water gently enough so all people aboard survived the impact and, having life vests for each person on board to stay afloat until help arrived. Having lights or flares would have resulted in their rescue sooner but, not the most important things to have in order to save lives. Again, surviving impact and life vests to stay afloat saved their lives.

OK if I was flying over water I would have a signal mirror, an EPIRB, a strobe light and a torch as a bare minimum on the gear connected to my body or withing arms reach to put on before going down!! If they had an EPIRB they would have been located within 15 minutes of the crash or less!! Not sure if the EPIRB is just an Australian thing, all boats are legally required to have them that go into certain areas. But there are land versions as well they tell emergency rescue crew like helicopters and boats a grid reference accurate to within a couple of meters to your exact location!! They literally fly straight to you!!

I know this is old... AND it's going to sound like a lot of extra work... BUT let's put it this way, "How much is YOUR LIFE worth???" It's a pretty great video, but this is MY addendum : Whenever you get life vests, I DO NOT CARE what craft you shop for or which model(s) of vests you buy... Check them out first. ADD the strobes, flashlights (little pen-lights are decent, especially in the age of LED's), whistles, shark-repellent if and as appropriate, AND REFLECTIVE TAPE... AND when you "add" I mean you get the damn nylon cord and physically bind them to the life vests if they're not already attached. There are lots of good booklets and tutorials on everything from tying the knots to seizings to STITCHES if that better suits YOUR idea of "That's not going anywhere NOW."... For things like the whistles and pen-lights, just a couple feet of slack in the cord is enough. Only MOST of an "arm length" is necessary so you can point it and use it... or get it to your lips and blow... whatever. There ARE even combo's with a small flashlight, whistle, AND even a compass "all in one"... BUT use your judgment. Finally, CHECK THE BATTERIES REGULARLY... every 3 to 6 months is usually enough, and keep a spare pair or two of batteries in a pocket of each vest, or some place you can "grab and go" if you think that works... SO when you're on the way down (usually the case, though not always) you CAN tell someone not to forget things like the spare batteries, or the life raft... The same goes for your raft... if you get one... There SHOULD be a kit inside for things like remarkably caloric nutrition bars, desalinizing kit, and a potable water bladder of some kind... Frequently things like hard candy, water treatment tablets, and mylar "survival blankets" are included... BUT make a list of what's pertinent in the water YOU fly over, and if it's not already in the raft-bundle, you can stock up in a well sealed FLOTATION container. Even an old cooler works as long as it seals well and can hold everything you need. Dental floss can work for fishing line and general purpose cordage... a survival/utility knife can be an excellent idea, depending on the other contexts of your flying "over water". AND AGAIN... REFLECTIVE TAPE... You don't necessarily need HUGE amounts of coverage, BUT you absolutely SHOULD have enough to make some design on your flotation devices that can't be mistaken by fly-overs as "just somethin' shiny in the flotsam". The point is to make it MORE VISIBLE... and especially on the ocean, that's a bit easier said than done... Glow-sticks and LED's are all good, but the more visible coverage you can have in the water, the better your chances of getting spotted and pulled out of it. DO NOT SCREW AROUND! ;o)

Should have stayed high enough that he could glide to shore if the engine failed. Crazy not to.

Another hint....have anybody in the right seat to carefully put their right foot at the top of the instrument panel. It'll keep his head from hitting the panel or yoke. My book: Over & Back by Wild Bill Callahan on Amazon.

Jellyfish keep sharks away Mmmm Well you stick to that if it makes you feel good in shark waters !! But they are actually a food source for some sharks.

One obvious question is... does the ELT signal vanish once it sinks a few (or many) feet below the surface? If so, ELT is near useless for ocean ditches.

I drive always w/ multi function flashlight Inc. strobe in 2 colors. Might have helped .

I wonder if they ever got the plane out of the water to see what happened that the engine quit, or was it to deep and not worth raising from the water?. But they probably didn't get the plane out because the pilot would have said something.

I fly to Marathon all the time, sometimes over the water direct to Hollywood/Miami

Altitude is your friend all - no way I'm filing or flying at 4000 over the water at night single engine. Take that sucker up to 10, 11, or 12 and buy yourself way more time to restart, driftdown closer to land, mayday call, coordinate your final lat/long, prep cabin, etc.

No 4 Don't fly single engine at night

Sorry for the newbie question, but why wouldn't he extend his flaps? Wouldn't that have helped out at least a little?

Far out over water and no survival gear? Silly.

Why would you fly so low over the water?

What is Meaning Flight Following

usually, in these episodes, pilot errors cause the pilots and passengers to die. In this case, no real errors, and all lived.

As someone considering taking flying lessons, it’s concerning how seemingly finicky these planes are. Then add the fact that you can’t find a good boat or RV mechanic so the assumption is the same applies for aviation mechanics and it seems you have a recipe for disaster. I have viewed far to many stories of vacuum failure causing gauges to out only to learn nobody seems to service/replace this critical component. Sure seems like flying is a dangerous gamble with too many factors out of ones control. I take notes with every video I listen to so I can be prepared as reasonably possible.

So, you're out over water, at night, in a single engine aircraft, and you don't have more than minimal water survival gear. Sounds like someone with a death wish, both for himself and his passengers. Sorry, but sometimes, we are our own worst enemy.

Could sully have done it at night? New York is lit up everywhere but surely the Hudson must be dark?

I’m sorry my post was intended for the bird strike video I just watched. My apologies

I would have been scard out of my wits.I can't swim.Im afraid of deep water.I to,am a private pilot.

Did you recover the aircraft?

At the end..yeah "if only the pilots would have had something to signal the rescue aircraft." While that would be beneficial, I am also wondering why the rescue aircraft did not have thermal imaging capabilities.

seems the flight following didnt help in this case

And why I’d the engine stop?

As to the flaps, I would have put em all the way down. Hit water as slow as you can.

You considered Ldg gear in a ditching? Sheeez!!!! This is the very reason I never fly a SE at night or over water, simply too risky

You need this to happen to carry light & Beacon???

Always those people and their irrational fear of sharks. He also didn'T know what kind of life vests he bought? No offense but they guy sounds lucky, not smart o.0

Cirrus has parachute but I wonder if also flying a water plane that is capable of landing on m water might have helped here?

many mistakes, lucky to be alive, should not be flying, no epirb? no flares? very unprepared for emergency

Smuggling cocaine and using drugs does tend to make people think they are invincible and that nothing is going to happen to them, so they forgo safety and common sense. Ironically it helped them stay warm overnight in that water where others would have died of exposure.

yeah lets fly a single engine airplane at night over the ocean with family on board. smart.

Must be an old person thing to not have basic flashlights on them. All I can see are Boomers flying.

No b acon? Gay