Pilot Taylor Hash was feeling “frantic” when she was informed that a critical piece of her landing gear had fallen off her single-engine plane during her third solo flight.
Hash, 21, was imagining how she was going to survive an emergency landing on Friday at a small airport in Pontiac, Michigan, when the soothing voice of a stranger came on her radio. It turned out to be just what she needed to help get her to safety.
Veteran pilot Chris Yates was flying nearby when he saw pieces of landing gear detach from Hash’s plane in mid-air and go bouncing down the runway. She would have to land without a front tire.
“I was thinking of my daughter and just how afraid and alone (Hash) probably felt,” Yates told NBC News correspondent Gadi Schwartz on “TODAY” on Wednesday.
The control tower apprised Hash of the situation.
“It was definitely the scariest moment I’ve had, probably in my life,” Hash said.
Their interview on “TODAY” marked the first time the two have actually seen each other, as Yates was in the middle of a flight when Hash had to make her landing.
Yates, the former director of aviation at SpaceX, could hear the anxiety in Hash’s voice when she asked over the radio if she should treat this as a normal soft field landing.
The veteran pilot and the flight controller told Hash to circle the field until she was ready to land, which gave Yates time to help settle her nerves. When Hash told him her first name is Taylor, which is his daughter’s name, he became emotional.
“I didn’t respond on the radio because I just couldn’t even talk,” he said. “I was welled up.”
However, he quickly settled down to do his best to guide her to safety.
“Taylor, this is Chris,” he said. “My daughter’s name is Taylor and I taught her to fly. We’re going to be just fine, kiddo.”
“Thank you very much,” she replied.
Just those few words were enough to help Hash rein in her panic.
“You can really tell how my voice went from frantic, ‘What am I going…
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