Plane Became Entangled On Approach To Land In Germany

A dangerous accident and potentially life-threatening situation came to a happy ending this weekend, after rescuers were able to extract a couple from their Europa light aircraft that became entangled in high-voltage power lines near Ulm, Germany.

London's Telegraph reports the 65-year-old pilot and his wife, 63, spent close to three hours upside-down in their aircraft Sunday, after the plane's right maingear wheel snagged the power line as they approached to land at a nearby field. The impact flipped the plane onto its back, suspended 80 feet in the air.

As rescuers debated how to come to the couple's assistance, gusting winds threatened to send the plane crashing down. The retired couple was also doused by avgas leaking from the plane's fuel tank... made even more unnerving by the powerful current traveling through the power lines, rated to carry as much as 380,000 volts of energy with respect to the ground.

"The occupants remained in radio contact with the ground throughout but you can imagine that their psychological condition worsened as the clock ticked on," said a police spokesman.

Officials considered sending a helicopter in to rescue the couple... but that idea was scrapped early on, as the helo's rotorwash would probably have forced the plane down.

Eventually, a 130-ton crane was trucked in to raise firemen up to the plane so they could cut the couple free. The man and woman were treated for shock at a nearby hospital, but were otherwise uninjured from the ordeal.

FMI: www.eu.int