🕒 Created · Updated

Faith Tenkley survives emergency water landing in Boca Raton after mechanical issues and landing gear failure

Faith Tenkley, a 23-year-old pilot, successfully performed an emergency water landing in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Boca Raton on Saturday morning. The flight, which began at Page Field in Fort Myers and was headed for Bimini in the Bahamas, encountered mechanical trouble approximately 15 miles west of the coast. Tenkley reported that the right engine failed and the landing gear broke, leading her to choose a water landing over a runway landing to avoid a potential fire caused by a hard landing with a full fuel tank. Tenkley navigated the aircraft away from buildings and beachgoers, eventually landing smoothly in the open water. She swam to shore with the assistance of a lifeguard and was taken to a local hospital as a precaution. Local authorities, including the Boca Raton Police Department and Boca Raton Fire Rescue, responded to the scene. The Federal Aviation Administration is currently leading the investigation into the incident.

Sources