There has been no shortage of in-flight mishaps lately – enough so that I would think most airplane passengers might be getting a little nervous.
And while this is a small plane with a single pilot, the video is still enough to give most of us some serious anxiety.
In it, Dutch pilot Narine Melkumjan hit a major snag when her glass canopy, which is meant to protect her from the elements, flipped up mid-flight.
*PLEASE MIND WHEN WATCHING. AT 2:17 MINUTE MARK VIDEO FOOTAGE BECOMES RATHER INTENSE*
A couple of years ago during my second aerobatic training flight of that day, on a very hot summer day, the canopy of the Extra 330LX that I was flying opened in flight and shattered. As you… pic.twitter.com/nLhvDqVnII
— Narine Melkumjan (@NarineMelkumjan) June 22, 2024
Pilot Melkumjan managed her fear through the “distressing experience,” which occurred while she was performing an aerobatic maneuver.
She persevered through strong winds that buffeted her face as she landed with squinted eyes.
“If you are a pilot watching this, I hope that my story serves as a cautionary tale and that you will learn from my mistakes. To all my fellow pilots out there, fly safe.”
She admits in her post that the incident was the result of human error, which could of course happen to anyone.
“A couple of years ago during my second aerobatic training flight of that day, on a very hot summer day, the canopy of the Extra 330LX that I was flying opened in flight and shattered. As you can see from the video, it was a challenging experience that could have been avoided if I had made a proper visual check before taking off.”
Like many scary incidents, it could have been easily avoided.
“The canopy locking pin had never gone into the locked position, and I failed to notice during my checks.”
Though she landed safely, Melkumjan says it was “nearly 28 hours” before her vision returned to normal.
So, stay calm when odd stuff happens.
And always, always double check your equipment before you do odd stuff.
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