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| Humberside Airport emergency landing man 'just wanted to get down' | Humberside Airport emergency landing man 'just wanted to get down' |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A passenger who was forced to land a light aircraft after his pilot fell ill at the controls said his only thought at the time was survival. | A passenger who was forced to land a light aircraft after his pilot fell ill at the controls said his only thought at the time was survival. |
| John Wildey landed the plane at Humberside Airport on Tuesday night, under the guidance of instructors called in by air traffic controllers. | |
| The pilot, who has since died, had collapsed in the cockpit. | The pilot, who has since died, had collapsed in the cockpit. |
| Speaking exclusively to the BBC, Mr Wildey said he "just wanted to keep going, to get down". | |
| 'Controlled crash' | |
| Mr Wildey, 77, is a flying enthusiast but has never had a lesson. | Mr Wildey, 77, is a flying enthusiast but has never had a lesson. |
| He said he "had plenty of doubts [about whether I'd survive], because I just didn't know what was going to happen". | He said he "had plenty of doubts [about whether I'd survive], because I just didn't know what was going to happen". |
| "Luckily [the instructors] were talking to me on the radio all the time, so that was helping me. They gave me confidence." | "Luckily [the instructors] were talking to me on the radio all the time, so that was helping me. They gave me confidence." |
| He described how he landed the plane with a "right bump", saying it was like a "controlled crash, really". | |
| Mr Wildey said the pilot, who has not been identified at the request of his family, was a "brilliant" man. | Mr Wildey said the pilot, who has not been identified at the request of his family, was a "brilliant" man. |
| "We had a good laugh and a chat going out there and coming back and then it all happened," he said. | |
| "I really feel sorry for his wife and his relatives, they're the ones that have actually suffered." | "I really feel sorry for his wife and his relatives, they're the ones that have actually suffered." |
| Actions 'phenomenal' | |
| Mr Wildey and his pilot were the only people on board the Cessna 172 aircraft, which had travelled from Sandtoft Airfield, near Scunthorpe, to Skegness. | |
| The men were close to arriving back at Sandtoft when the pilot fell ill and Mr Wildey had to be diverted to Humberside Airport to make his landing. | |
| He said he was finding it hard to deal with the death of his friend. | |
| "I didn't get much sleep last night worrying about, thinking about what I should have done, could have done," Mr Wildey added. | |
| Richard Tomlinson, a friend of both men, said Mr Wildey was a "hero". | Richard Tomlinson, a friend of both men, said Mr Wildey was a "hero". |
| He said that "for somebody who is not a pilot but has been around airfields and been a passenger on several occasions to take control is phenomenal". | He said that "for somebody who is not a pilot but has been around airfields and been a passenger on several occasions to take control is phenomenal". |
| "The man is nothing short of a hero." | "The man is nothing short of a hero." |