Blinded pilot guided to safe landing by RAF

Daily Telegraph – 8 Nov 2008

A pilot who was blinded by a suspected stroke whilst flying solo at 15,000ft has said he owes his life to the RAF after it scrambled an aircraft to guide him down to safety. Jim O'Neill, 65, made seven aborted attempts at emergency landings before he finally touched down in his Cessna thanks to the RAF pilot who flew alongside him, giving constant instructions and reassurance over his radio. Mr O'Neill, who is now being treated in hospital, said: "I should not be alive. I owe my life, and those of dozens of people I could have crash-landed on, to the RAF.

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The drama unfolded on Friday last week when Mr O'Neill was 40 minutes into a flight from Prestwick, Glasgow, to Earls Colne, near Colchester, Essex, as he returned home from a family visit. When his vision suddenly failed, he initially thought he had been dazzled by the sun, but as he began to pass over North Yorkshire he alerted air traffic controllers, who in turn contacted RAF Linton-on-Ouse, near York. The station's controllers talked to Mr O'Neill over the radio and he told them he had a problem and "would like to get down".

Mr Gerrard intercepted Mr O'Neill's Cessna 152 Skylane within minutes, flying just 500ft away so he could give the stricken pilot precise instructions on what to do. It was a further 45 minutes before Mr O'Neill finally touched down at his eighth attempt, bouncing twice before coming to a halt at the very end of the runway, where an ambulance was waiting.

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