WEST PALM BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - It was an emotional return to the sky for a South Florida pilot, more than a year after he suffered a health scare behind the wheel.
Cameras captured Kenneth Allen piloting a single-engine Cessna 208 this weekend.
“Engine looks good,” he said.
They’re words he has repeated a million times, but Allen said preparing to fly is different now.
“It’s like a ton of bricks fell off my shoulders. The noose came from around my neck, and it felt like freedom,” he said.
Allen was aboard this very same aircraft when it landed at Palm Beach International Airport in May of last year.
He started the trip as the pilot, but he suffered a massive heart episode mid-flight and passed out.
The two passengers on board had zero flight experience.
“I’ve got a serious situation here: my pilot has gone incoherent. I have no idea how to fly the airplane,” said passenger Darren Harrison to air traffic control.
With the help of air traffic control, the passengers safely got the plane on the ground. The Federal Aviation Administration called it a “miracle landing.”
“I think about it multiple times a day, every day,” said Allen. “I don’t understand it to this day, I really don’t. The whole thing is just a miracle.”
For the last 17 months, Allen has worked to convince the FAA that he’s safe to fly.
“I had to do a cognitive test, echocardiograms, CAT scans, MRIs — I mean, you name it,” he said. “That’s why it took 17 months.”
Earlier this week, the FAA agreed and reinstated Allen’s pilot’s license, clearing him to once again fly solo.
“I looked back, like, ‘Who’s back there with me?’ And this time, there was nobody there,” he said, “so that felt really, really good.”
One of the first passengers he took for a ride was Dr. Nishant Patel, the surgeon who saved his life.
“We’re going to trade deals, so I’m teaching him how to fly, and he’s going to teach me how to do vascular surgery,” said Allen.
“I could completely appreciate the look on his face, the joy on his face, the smile, watching him do what he loves to do,” said Patel.
And what he can now do with zero restrictions.
“OK, we’re down on the ground now,” said Allen.
“Nice landing,” said Patel.
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