A pilot has survived, only by a miracle, after his plane crashed not once but seven times. He exclaims that his trip was ‘doomed from the beginning’.
After a 20-year break from flying, Dennis Collier, who had prior experience, had the desire to take to the skies again in 2021.
He purchased a plane for $110,000 (£91,300) from an online site without inspecting it in person, but upon traveling from Michigan to California to retrieve it, he discovered that it had not been flown in two years and had some parts installed incorrectly.
The Detroit Press reported that the flaps on the wing and tail worked “intermittently,” which was cause for concern. Despite these issues, Collier proceeded with the sale.
Subsequently, he experienced seven crashes in seven days across four different states.
The first crash occurred in June during a test flight, when Collier forgot to deploy the landing gear and landed with a loud noise, causing the fuselage to scrape the ground. Collier stated that he could not see the runway or the ground, which prompted him to pull back on the power.
Unfortunately, the plane stalled, and Collier landed off the runway, hitting a sign and multiple lights while attempting to reach the ground.
Despite these incidents, Collier attempted to fly again on June 28 after making repairs, indicating that he had not been deterred by his previous accidents. However, the plane was still having issues, causing Collier to land roughly in New Mexico, where he hit another runway light.
While airborne, Collier noticed that the left-wing hinged tab was stuck, causing the plane to pitch up. Despite four rough landing attempts, during which he hit three lights, bounced off the runway, and damaged the motor controlling the trim on the left wing, Collier managed to land.
This incident was the fourth crash.
For his next landing, the pilot chose to land at Schoolcraft County Airport in Manistique. However, he was unable to lower the nose landing gear, resulting in the plane skidding down the runway and damaging the front hull and nose gear door.
This incident was the seventh crash, which occurred on July 4th, just 80 miles away from his destination of Boyne City while flying over Lake Michigan.
To make matters worse, the engine started sputtering and eventually turned off, leaving Collier in a perilous situation as his plane was equipped to land on water, but the flaps necessary for this were not working.
Despite enduring seven crashes, Collier emerged unscathed, remarking, “not a scratch, not a bruise, nothing.” Nevertheless, he felt that his journey was fated to be challenging, stating, “It was doomed. It was doomed from the beginning.”
The individual who sold Collier the plane insisted that it was in excellent condition at the time of purchase. Collier acknowledged that he would probably lose his flying license due to the series of mishaps.
He has accepted the outcome, declaring, “Life goes on. I have to let it go. It was a stupid thing to do.”