It was a calm sunny day in mid-January as Bob climbed into his plane to go for a late
afternoon
flight over the mountains. He started the engine and it gave a weak squeal as it turned
over. Bob thought
nothing of this as it happens when it is cold out, but it was more than he could ever
know. He taxied his
plane to the end of the runway and applied full power. The plane began to accelerate
slowly at first but
quickly gained speed, and just as fast it leaped into the air.
About twenty minutes into the flight the plane gave a shudder as a strong gust of wind
shoved at
the small plane. In minutes the sun disappeared and snow took its place. Bob's peaceful
afternoon flight
had just become a nightmare.
Bob attempted to turn the small plane back to the airport but the wind would not allow
it. The
wind had it's way with the plane until that squeal came back to haunt the young man
inside. With a
shudder and a bang the plane's prop stopped. Within seconds the stall horn began to blow
and the plane
rolled onto it's right side and plummeted to the snow covered ground.
Bob awoke, not knowing how long he was out, hoping that some one had received his
frantic calls
for help. After a day he decided to try and hike out, he took everything he could carry.
He made good
distance during the day but at nightfall he knew it was over; the temperature had fallen
below negative fifty
mark.
The rescuers sent out search parties and finally found him in his sleeping bag next to a
burnt out
fire. They had been looking for weeks, this is what they had expected.
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