Channel 5's nail-biting docuseries Terror at 30,000 Feet culminates with the gripping story of British Airways Flight 5390 tonight (Friday, August 30) at 9 pm.
The final episode recounts the chilling events that unfolded on June 10, 1990, as a plane flying from Birmingham to Malaga experienced a critical failure when its cockpit windows shattered at an altitude of 23,000 feet.
Pilots Captain Tim Lancaster and Alistair Atchison had barely spent 13 minutes airborne when their ordeal began; Lancaster was propelled from his seat by the decompression, slamming against the plane's exterior.
It was flight attendant Nigel Ogden's heroic efforts that saved the day, catching Lancaster's legs and preventing him from being completely ejected from the aircraft. Meanwhile, co-pilot Atchison lost consciousness.
Reflecting on the extraordinary event, Ogden disclosed: "His shirt had been pulled off his back and his body was bent upwards, doubled over round the top of the aircraft. Everything was being sucked out of the aircraft: even an oxygen bottle that had been bolted down went flying and nearly knocked my head off.", reports the Daily Star.
"I was holding on for grim death but I could feel myself being sucked out, too. John Howard (another steward) rushed in behind me and saw me disappearing, so he grabbed my trouser belt to stop me slipping further, then wrapped the captain's shoulder strap around me. I was still holding Tim, but my arms were getting weaker, and then he slipped."
"I thought I was going to lose him, but he ended up bent in a U-shape around the windows. His face was banging against the window with blood coming out of his nose and the side of his head, his arms were flailing and seemed about six feet long. Most terrifyingly, his eyes were wide open. I'll never forget that sight as long as I live."
Eventually, Atchison regained consciousness from his compression unconsciousness and took control of the plane, executing an emergency landing at Southampton Airport. Lancaster was left with frostbite and multiple fractures; he'd been rag-dolled for 20 minutes in the air.
The common fear of flying - aerophobia - has found a home on TikTok, with countless clips documenting people's heart-stopping experiences and guides on how to cope with it.
Do you dare to watch the next episode of Terror at 30,000 Feet?
