When a twin-engine plane crashed and burst into flames on the California 405 freeway during rush hour, it was an absolute miracle there were no casualties. And as the pilot trapped inside the burning plane, Frank Pisano is sharing his story from that harrowing day. It was just Frank Pisano and his wife, Janan, aboard a twin-engine plane when things went horribly wrong. The couple was on their way to Scottsdale, Arizona for a relaxing weekend -- a trip they made regularly. But this trip was certainly unlike any other! [rsnippet id="3"]
“Everything looked good,” Frank said. “So we taxied out.”But as the trip continued, something wasn't quite right. Then, at about 400 feet elevation, the right engine sputtered and went out. RELATED: Biker Knows Guardian Angels/Divine Intervention Saved Him In Crash Frank tried to head the plane back to John Wayne Airport for an emergency landing, all while declaring a mayday over the radio.
“That’s something that no pilot ever wants to do,” the pilot said. “As a pilot, you learn to fly the plane first and talk second.”Frank had been flying for 27 years, so he knew the plane was going down. Not long after telling his wife to brace for impact, the plane crashed on the California 405 freeway during morning rush hour and promptly burst into flames.
"When I was trapped, I was ready to die," he told a crowd of about 250 people at Mount of Olives Church in Mission Viejo. "I put my head down and prayed. It was a really peaceful feeling."But God had other plans for Frank! [/slide]
“Another person, not knowing any better, tried to pick up my legs while John was dragging me out,” Franko said. “John stopped him immediately. If someone did pick up my feet and moved them the wrong way, I could have been paralyzed.”Once John freed Frank from the plane and got him to safety, more of God's angels swooped in. An intensive care unit nurse and a Good Samaritan joined John in caring for the pilot and his wife. [rsnippet id="3"] The couple spent several weeks in the hospital, and both wore back braces as they shared their testimony at Mount of Olives Church several months after the crash. Frank still attends physical therapy, but both he and Janan agree God was in control that fateful day!
“Anytime you have a plane that crashes onto a freeway, the potential for great loss of life or great injury always exists,” Orange County Global spokesman Jeff Corless said. “It was extraordinary that all the patients we had were just patients of the aircraft.”RELATED: A Young Couple Was Spared From A Horrible Crash And It Was All God The plane just so happened to safely clip an off-duty firefighter's truck -- the same man who managed to pull the pilot trapped inside the burning plane to safety. And his profession armed him with the knowledge of just how to carry Frank so as to avoid further injury. Additionally, because of the impact, the plane turned left which softened the impact for Frank and Janan when it hit the concrete divider.
“I didn’t know how bad the explosion was until a few nights later in the hospital,” Janan Pisano said. “I couldn’t sleep, so I pulled out my iPhone and Googled images -- I was shocked.”When their son later returned to the wreckage to see if their headsets could be salvaged, he found them a “melted mess of plastic and metal.” And if that's not enough to have you shouting "miracle," two friends were originally supposed to join the Pisanos on the trip. However, they ended up backing out. If they'd come, it's likely the crash would have been much worse.
“If they were there, it would have changed the whole configuration,” Frank said. “We would have had more weight and that would have reduced maneuverability (of the airplane).”Frank and Janan highlighted all of these incredible details as they spoke publicly about the crash for the first time at Mount of Olives Church where they've attended for 20 years. The title of their appearance: “Miracle on the 405.” It's suspected a malfunction involving the fuel selector switches caused the crash. We may not know why things happened the way they did that day.
“I think that’s a question we’ll be trying to answer for a long time,” Janan Pisano said when asked why she thought there were so many miracles that day.But we definitely know God was at work! h/t: San Francisco Chronicle YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Grandma Drags 17-Month-Old From Crash, Then Car Bursts Into Flames Seconds Later