Sole survivors: How people live through plane crashes that kill everyone else
Share this @internewscast.com

The world was shocked by the plane crash in India that killed hundreds.

Vishwash Kumar Ramesh was somehow thrown clear when the Air India flight exploded and split in two.

Even more remarkably, Ramesh was able to walk away from the crash with only minor injuries.

It seems like an unthinkable fluke, but Ramesh is not the first person to survive a plane crash through bizarre and surprising circumstances.

Here are some other remarkable plane crash survival stories.

Eighty people were killed in what was then the world’s worst air disaster in 1950.

The plane stalled on landing at Llandow Aerodrome in Wales and broke into pieces on landing.

The Avro Tudor V had been stripped so more seats could be put on board for the trip to watch Wales play Ireland in a rugby international.

Two survivors sitting in the newly installed seats at the tail walked away from the crash unharmed.

The only other survivor was a passenger who was in the toilet as the plane landed. He spent four months in hospital.

The Llandow plane crash was the deadliest in world history up to that point. (South Wales Police)

The chances of surviving a mid-air plane explosion are so small that it is almost beyond comprehension.

Flying over the Amazon rainforest on Christmas Eve, 1971, a Lockheed L-188A flew into a dark cloud and was struck by lightning.

“Suddenly the noise stopped and I was outside the plane. I was in a freefall, strapped to my seat bench and hanging head-over-heels.

“The whispering of the wind was the only noise I could hear.”

Juliane Koepcke was the German teenager who was the sole survivor of the crash of LANSA Flight 508 in the Peruvian rainforest. Kopcke followed a stream for nine days until she found a shelter where a lumberman was able to help her get the rest of the way to civilization. She is shown here with some of her classmates as she returned to classes in Lima. (Bettmann Archive)

The teen blacked out as she was spinning uncontrollably to the ground, so it is not certain how she survived the landing.

However, navigating through over 30 meters of the dense foliage and branches of the Amazon rainforest canopy decelerated her descent sufficiently so that the final impact wasn’t lethal.

The plane bombing survivor

In 1972, a briefcase bomb detonated on a Yugoslavian aircraft, resulting in 23 passengers and four crewmembers being ejected from the debris. The odds of survival seemed nonexistent.

She fell from a distance of ten kilometres up – no one has ever fallen from that high without a parachute and survived.

An explosion in the baggage department split the plane into several pieces, sucking the passengers and other flight crew out of the plane.

Vesna Vulovic became a national hero following her incredible survival story.
Vesna Vulovic became a national hero following her incredible survival story. (Supplied)

But Vulovic was pinned in the fuselage by a food cart, keeping her in place as it fell to the ground.

Her section of the aircraft landed at an angle on a snowy mountainside in then-Czechoslovakia.

The trees and the snow, as well as the angle of the mountain, made for a softer landing.

Bahia Bakari was a 12-year-old returning from a wedding when the Yemen Airways plane she was in crashed into the Indian Ocean in 2009.

Clinging to wreckage in the pitch black, Bakari remembered hearing cries for help from other passengers.

But when help finally arrived 11 hours later, she was the only one still alive.

Bahia Bakari, the sole survivor of Yemenia Flight 626, an Airbus A310 that crashed into the sea off the Indian Ocean archipelago of Comoros, walks out during a break in the trial in Paris, France. (AP) (AP)

Bakari suffered a broken collarbone, a broken hip, burns and other injuries.

But she had no lasting physical injuries.

In December last year, Jeju Air Flight 2216 encountered a crash upon landing after a bird strike. The sole survivors were two flight attendants positioned at the back of the aircraft.

The crash split the fuselage, separating where the attendants were sitting from the remainder of the plane.

But despite the old adage, the rear is not necessarily the safest part of the plane.

The wreckage of a Boeing 737-800 plane operated by South Korean budget airline Jeju Air lies at Muan International Airport in Muan, South Korea, Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
The wreckage of a Boeing 737-800 plane operated by South Korean budget airline Jeju Air. (AP)

“There isn’t any data that shows a correlation of seating to survivability,” says Hassan Shahidi, president of the Flight Safety Foundation said after the crash.

“Every accident is different.”

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like
Images of accused gunman Dezi Freeman being arrested

Family Member Captured Images Before Fatal Shooting, Police Report

Warning: This story contains images and details that some readers may find…
A demonstrator shouts slogans during a protest outside the Parliament in Kathmandu.

Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns Following Violent Protests Against Social Media Ban

Nepal’s prime minister has stepped down following the deaths of over a…
The other names in Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday book

The Additional Names Featured in Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th Birthday Guestbook

Donald Trump isn’t the only US president to appear in a collection…
Emergency crews were called to Hoffman Engineering in Bassendean, in the city's north-east, about 2.40pm today.

Father’s Factory Death Called a ‘Preventable Tragedy’

Unions have labelled the death of a 45-year-old apprentice a “preventable tragedy”.…

Innovative Vaccine for Chlamydia Brings New Hope for At-Risk Koalas

A breakthrough vaccine for a common sexually transmitted disease has provided fresh…

Australia Post Resumes US Shipping Services, but Delays May Persist for Some Customers

Australia Post says it plans to lift its partial suspension of parcel…

Liberal MP Julian Leeser Issues Apology Over Jacinta Price’s Remarks About Indian Immigration

Liberal MP Julian Leeser has issued an “unreserved” apology to Indian Australians…
Lisa McCune has opened up about her 'situationship' with New Zealand opera star Teddy Tahu Rhodes, 13 years after they were busted kissing while both being married to other people. Pictured together in 2012

“Blue Heelers Star Lisa McCune Opens Up About Surprising Relationship with Teddy Tahu Rhodes Amidst Public Scandal”

Lisa McCune has shared details about her ‘situationship’ with New Zealand opera…
What police found at Tom Phillips's campsite: 1. Fuel drum 2. Concealed quad bike 3. Camouflage netting 4. Spare wheels 5. Water container 6. Two cans of Sprite 7. Concealed motorcycle 8. Children's lunch box and water bottle 9. Steel mug 10. Crushed Coke can

10 Key Revelations from Tom Phillips’ Remote New Zealand Hideout with His Children – and What’s Missing from the Scene

Images from the isolated campsite where Tom Phillips was hiding with his…
The higher potency of marijuana today is a growing concern when it comes to potential health harms, experts say.

Study Reveals Potential Link Between Marijuana Use and Chromosomal Defects in Human Egg Cells

Marijuana may damage oocytes — unfertilised eggs in female ovaries — in…
Australians in Qatar urged to stay alert after Israeli strike on Doha

Australians in Qatar Advised to Remain Vigilant Following Israeli Attack on Doha

Australians in the Qatari capital of Doha have been urged stay alert…
NZ Police have highlighted the similarities in the searches for slain fugitive Tom Phillips and alleged cop killer Dezi Freeman (pictured, a missing poster for Phillips and his children)

New Zealand Authorities Warn Public About Sovereign Citizen Dezi Freeman Following Recent Capture of Longtime Fugitive

A top policeman in New Zealand has shared advice about confronting armed…