Although flying an airplane is usually safe when handled by professionals, plenty of people still harbor a serious phobia of taking to the blue skies. It’s an understandable fear, after all; human beings weren’t made to fly!
More often than not, commercial flights are uneventful—except for, perhaps, a little bit of turbulence. Sometimes, however, things can go horribly wrong and it’s those stories that tend to make the news.
When a teenager boarded a flight from Peru to Germany with her mother, she expected to be home in time for Christmas. She had no idea that she was putting her very life on the line…
This is the amazing story of survival involving a German-Peruvian woman named Juliane Koepcke – she was only 17-years-old back in 1971 when the plane she and her mother were on suddenly burst into flames after an unfortunate lightning strike. The plane was hovering over the Amazon Rainforest when it crashed. Juliane however, was lucky to have survived the 2-mile fall.
Born in Peru to German parents, Juliane’s father was a zoologist, and her mother Maria was an ornithologist. The family spent their lives researching the Amazon – and that proved to be Juliane’s advantage.
Juliane’s survival skills ranging from DIY medical skills to coping with life in the wilderness were the keys to her very own miracle.
Juliane and her mother were on a plane heading back to Germany on Christmas Eve – right after she had graduated from Peruvian High school.
Juliane explained that the plane she was on was flying through a storm, but ultimately, lightning strikes were what caused the plane to burst into flames – quickly.
The plane took a deep nosedive downwards – and Juliane got separated from her mother in the process.
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