'Hero' pilot makes emergency landing on Devon beach full of bank holiday tourists

Hair-raising footage shows the moment a pilot was forced to make an emergency landing in the middle of revellers out enjoying the sunshine on a beach.

Experienced pilot Zac Rockey, 47, was forced to utilise all of his training when the engine of his 1930s light aircraft cut out as he was flying over the south coast.

As the plane began to lose height, Mr Rockey and his passenger, Trudi Spiller, began to look around for a safe place to land. Trudi was left waving frantically out the aircraft window to sunbathers on the beach below to move out the way, as Mr Rockey steered the plane towards the coastline.

No one was hurt during the landing, which happened at around 5pm on Saturday on Jacob's Ladder beach in Sidmouth, Devon, and the plane wasn't damaged.

The light aircraft is being dismantled by police and the coastguard, as there is no other way to remove it from the beach.

Mr Rockey and Ms Spiller had spent Saturday afternoon taking the World War One-era plane down to Bodmin Airfield for an event to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.

It was as the pair were making their way back to Branscombe that the plane suddenly started to lose power - before the engine then cut out completely.

Mr Rockey said: "We were flying along, taking in the view, when it began to lose power.

"It failed, the options available to me in the cockpit didn’t work. So I had to look for somewhere to land.

Mr Rockey said that all his training came into play as he dealt with the situation - but added that it could have been a lot worse.

"You look for somewhere near something or people so that if there are complications you will be able to get help more easily.

"You know what - I have had better runways. It was not ideal," he added.

Passenger Ms Spiller said that the dramatic episode had left her with 'jelly legs' - but that she had complete faith in her "amazing" pilot to land the aircraft safely.

She said: "Zac is my hero. He is an amazing, fantastic pilot and I had every confidence in him, absolute faith that he would land it.

"I was sat in the front seat. As we came around the cliffs it began to slow up, then the next thing there was a total failure and the engine cut out.

"I turned around and called 'Zac' but of course you can't hear each other up there.

"He's looking out of the side of the plane and I started moving my arms telling people to get out of the way.

"I was slightly frightened. It wasn't like my life flashed before me or anything but I was thinking 'here we go'.

"I gave a sigh of relief as we landed and got out quickly but afterwards I have to admit I had jelly legs."

And onlookers on the beach were stunned to see the plane sitting there as they continued to enjoy the warm weather through the evening.

Emma Salter, who lives nearby, arrived with her husband at around 8pm for an evening picnic, to see a small crowd gathered down on the beach.

She said: "I asked one of the crew - there must have been around 15 of them - if the beach was closed, and he smiled and said no, but watch out for the plane.

"When we got down to the shore we couldn't believe what we were seeing - our friend, who volunteers for Sidmouth lifeboat, in his tractor towing a plane.

"I can only imagine how strange is must have been for people on the beach watching it land - you just wouldn't think it was going to land."

Ms Salter added: "It had been towed to a more accessible spot by the time we arrived, so we just set up our picnic beside it and carried on."

Mr Rockey and Ms Spiller have thanked the Sidmouth Coastguard crews for their help and support in towing the plane to a safe location, about 300m along the beach.

SWNS