The Pilot Who Was Sucked Out of His Own Plane at 17,000 Feet | E 166

The CRUX: True Survival Stories

Bleav + Kaycee McIntosh + Julie Henningsen

Society & Culture, Halloween, Nature, Documentary, True Crime, National, Crime, Wilderness

4.0 • 609 Ratings

🗓️ 26 May 2025

⏱️ 43 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Get ready for a jaw-dropping tale that sounds like Hollywood fiction but is 100% real. On June 10th, 1990, British Airways Flight 5390's cockpit windscreen explosively blew out just 13 minutes after takeoff, literally sucking Captain Tim Lancaster halfway out of the aircraft at 17,000 feet. For 22 agonizing minutes, he was pinned against the fuselage—outside a commercial airliner traveling at 400 mph—while his heroic crew desperately held onto his legs and fought to land the plane. Hosts Kaycee McIntosh and Julie Henningsen break down this incredible true story minute-by-minute, revealing how tiny maintenance errors cascaded into a life-or-death emergency, the extraordinary physics that should have killed the captain in minutes, and the split-second decisions that saved 81 lives. Warning: You'll never look at airplane windows the same way again.

Transcript

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0:00.0	At the crux, we talk about tough decisions and clear thinking,
0:03.1	and that's exactly what case knives represent.
0:05.8	For over a hundred years, case knives have been tools of capability.
0:09.4	They're carried by people who solve problems,
0:11.8	lead with confidence, and do things the right way.
0:14.7	Made with craftsmanship in Bradford, Pennsylvania,
0:17.2	each case knife is built for those who don't just face challenges.
0:20.8	They cut through them case knives
0:22.9	everyday capable hello survivalists this is the Crux True Survival Story podcast.
0:39.0	I'm Casey McIntosh.
0:40.3	And I'm Julie Hennyson.
0:44.0	And we are medical professionals with a passion for wilderness survival.
0:49.7	Join us as we explore real-life survival stories and the critical moments that determine their outcomes.
0:50.7	Buckle up.
0:51.7	Adventure awaits.
0:53.5	Let's dive into this week's story.
1:01.8	Julie, I've got an unbelievable story for you. And first, shout out to listener Amy and Maine, who suggested the story. So thanks, Amy. Today, we're talking about the incredible
1:08.0	survival of Captain Tim Lancaster, aboard British Airways Flight 5390.
1:14.4	Picture this, June 10, 1990.
1:17.6	A routine flight from Birmingham to a sunny Malaga, Spain, just 13 minutes after takeoff at 17,300 feet,
1:25.8	the cockpit windscreen explosively blows out. And here's the kicker.
1:31.6	The captain gets partially sucked out of the aircraft and remains pinned against the fuselage
	...

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