MIAMI — A 23-year-old Florida pilot who pulled off a remarkable emergency landing in the Atlantic Ocean and survived comes from a family with deep ties to aviation, her father said proudly.
Faith Tenkley was flying to the Bahamas on Saturday to pick up her parents when she was forced to ditch her Piper PA-39 twin-engine aircraft off the coast of Boca Raton, Fla., after an engine failure and a landing gear malfunction.
“I have my pilot’s license also and she flies commercially,” her father, 56-year-old Chad Tenkley, told The Post on Monday when asked whether flying runs in the family.
“I’m really proud of her,” he said.
Chad confirmed that the 1971 aircraft Faith was piloting alone belongs to his Fort Myers-based aviation company, usoarflorida LLC. He noted, however, that his daughter does not fly commercially for the business.
Faith, who earned her pilot’s license four years ago, said in a statement Sunday that she felt “incredibly fortunate” to have been able to swim away from the crash landing.
She departed Fort Myers shortly before 8:50 a.m. and was headed to Bimini to collect Chad and his wife, Lisa, when the plane developed problems less than an hour into the trip, about 15 miles off Boca Raton.
READ MORE: Socialist Candidate Faces Backlash Over Usha Vance Attacks
Dramatic video captured the tense moments as Tenkley calmly guided the aircraft down onto the water, avoiding a far more dangerous crash near people and buildings on land.
“After deciding a landing at Boca Raton Airport was not the safest option I continued to the coast,” Tenkley said.
“During the descent my primary focus was ensuring the safety of everyone around me. I was able to navigate toward open water, successfully avoiding all nearby buildings, paddleboarders, and swimmers (as well as individuals using metal detectors).”
Shocked witnesses on the beach told how they saw Faith carry out the feat without suffering any injuries.
“One second I’m spraying sunscreen on my kid. The next I’m looking up and saying, ‘Is that supposed to be happening?’” beachgoer Maria Marks told WPBF.
“They went for the shallow water which I think is kinda smart,” another witness, Alex Bester, told WPLG.
After Tenkley was able to make her way back to shore, crews removed the plane from the ocean.
She later reunited with her relieved parents after they flew back from the Bahamas with another plane.
“Fortunately, there was a flight out right away shortly after that, and we just flew into Miami and then met her,” her dad Chad said.
