FLIGHTMARE
How a British Airways pilot got sucked out of cockpit window at 17,000ft – and lived to tell the extraordinary tale
THE incredible tale of how a British Airways pilot survived being sucked out of the cockpit window has resurfaced more than 30 years on.
Some 13 minutes into the flight from Birmingham to Malaga, as the plane was travelling over Oxfordshire, two of the six cockpit windows shattered.
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Captain Tim Lancaster was ripped from his seat and sucked out of the window of the BAC-111 at 17,300ft on June 20, 1990.
The sudden decompression also blew the cockpit door from its hinges, nearly knocking flight attendant Nigel Ogden to the ground.
But quick-thinking Nigel managed to grab the pilot's legs as he disappeared out of the window.
Nigel later the Sydney Morning Herald: “I was just stepping out, with my hand on the door handle, when there was an enormous explosion, and the door was blown out of my hands.
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“I thought ‘My god, it’s a bomb’.
"I whipped round and saw the front windscreen had disappeared and Tim, the pilot, was going out through it - he had been sucked out of his seat belt and all I could see were his legs.
"I jumped over the control column and grabbed him round his waist to avoid him going out completely.
"His shirt had been pulled off his back and his body was bent upwards, doubled over round the top of the aircraft.
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"His legs were jammed forward, disconnecting the autopilot, and the flight door was resting on the controls, sending the plane hurtling down at nearly 650kmh through some of the most congested skies in the world."
The captain was gradually slipping out of the window as Nigel held onto the pilot, but he started getting frostbite and his grip was loosening.
Thankfully a second cabin crew member called John Heward came running into the cockpit and grabbed the pilot by the belt.
Nigel added: "I was still holding Tim, but my arms were getting weaker, and then he slipped. I thought I was going to lose him, but he ended up bent in a U-shape around the windows.
"His face was banging against the window with blood coming out of his nose and the side of his head, his arms were flailing and seemed about six feet long.
"Most terrifyingly, his eyes were wide open. I'll never forget that sight as long as I live."
Meanwhile the co-pilot Alistair Atchison had taken over the controls.
He urged his colleagues not to let go of the captain - since not only would he die but his body could also seriously damage the plane.
A second flight attendant called Simon strapped himself into the third pilot's chair and helped to hold on to the chain of men.
Nigel told the Sunday Times: "All I can remember is looking at Alastair Atchison, the co-pilot, struggling to get the plane under control and shouting 'Mayday! Mayday!' into the radio.
"God knows how, but while all this was going on, Alastair managed to get the plane under control."
'Tremendous pressure'
The first officer executed an emergency descent to an altitude where everyone on board could breathe.
He then prepared for an emergency landing with his captain still dangling out of the window.
Nigel recalled: "I let John take over in the cabin and I ran back to look after the passengers, who had all heard the bang.
"My poor colleague Sue Prince had been looking after the plane on her own, bless her.
"I screamed, 'Brace! Brace!' Everyone knew the seriousness of the situation then.
"The pressure on Alastair must have been tremendous - everybody's life was in his hands. But he brought that plane down perfectly."
The plane landed at Southampton Airport, where they were met by fire crews.
Incredibly, the pilot suffered only frostbite and a number of fractures and bruising.
He was pictured recovering in hospital.
Nigel was also treated for his injuries and left the plane with his arm in a sling. All 81 passengers walked off unharmed.
According to a report by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch, a fitter had used the wrong bolts to secure the windscreen 27 hours before the flight.
The report said the process was ";characterised by a series of poor work practices, poor judgements and perceptual errors."
The bizarre drama was recreated for a documentary called Air Crash Investigation - Blow Out, which was aired on the National Geographic Channel in 2005.
Stills from the show recently went viral on social media.
Remarkably, everyone involved was back in the air within weeks or months.
Nigel was awarded the Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air, and continued with BA until leaving to work for the Salvation Army,
Captain Lancaster was back flying five months later, and was still with BA until 2003, before five years working for easyJet.
First Officer Atchison joined Jet2, and was still flying until he turned 65 in 2015.
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Even the plane - built in 1971 - returned to the air.
It flew under BA colours for another three years, before eight years of service with Romanian budget carrier Jaro International.
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